Less than 24 hours after a devastating defeat to the Philadelphia Eagles in Super Bowl LII, the Patriots are wasting little time in preparing for 2018. With current defensive coordinator, Matt Patricia, expected to be named the Head Coach in Detroit, the Patriots are apparently looking outside the organization for his replacement. According to reports, the Patriots are expected to name former Rutgers and Buccaneers coach, Greg Schiano the new defensive coordinator.
Many expected current linebackers coach, Brian Flores to ascend to the role. However, the move to bring in Schiano makes plenty of sense given his relationship with Bill Belichick. In addition, the slew of former Rutgers players on the roster, such as Devin McCourty and Duron Harmon, makes it a practical move from a personnel standpoint.
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Now, there is a possibility that Flores still gets the coordinator job and Schiano comes on as a special assistant. Given the interest in Flores by other NFL franchises, he may get a head coaching job in the very near feature. In which case, Schiano would likely slide into that role. Some have even speculated that Schiano could become the “head-coach-in-waiting” for the Patriots.
Schiano would, in my opinion, elevate to possible head coach-in-waiting if he came in any capacity. https://t.co/tEXkLG7Wax
— Tom E. Curran (@tomecurran) February 5, 2018
Schiano has spent the past two season as the defensive coordinator at Ohio State under Urben Meyer. In 2017, the Buckeyes led the nation with 114 tackles for loss. Needless to say, Schiano coaches an aggressive style of defense. Given the fact that the Patriots failed to hit Nick Foles at all in the Super Bowl, becoming a more aggressive defense should be a focus of this team in the offseason.
Despite the failings of the defense at the time, the Patriots team is still plenty talented. They will welcome back Dont’a Hightower next season and return a number of core players. Although it looks as though Malcolm Butler already has one foot, possibly two, out the door, the Patriots still boast a talented secondary. Whoever takes the reigns will be saddled with the failures of this season including the terrible third-down defense they showed throughout the year.
– Ian Glendon is the Editor-In-Chief of Full Press Coverage and the AFC East Division Editor. He covers the NFL. Like and follow on Follow @iglen31 Follow @FPC_Patriots and Facebook.
