The New England Patriots recently lost offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels when he became the new head coach of the Las Vegas Raiders, but a familiar face might be returning to the coaching staff in another offensive role.
Sports Illustrated's Albert Breer reported Tuesday morning that the Patriots are working on a deal to bring Joe Judge back to Foxboro as an offensive assistant. Judge spent the last two seasons as New York Giants head coach but was fired last month after a posting 10-23 overall record.
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UPDATE (4:20 p.m. ET): It's now official: The Patriots have hired Judge as an "offensive assistant."
Offensive assistant is kind of a vague title. The Patriots still need an offensive coordinator to replace McDaniels, with Bill O'Brien and Adam Gase rumored to be potential candidates. Perhaps Judge would fill that role without having the actual offensive coordinator title.
Judge does have some experience as an offensive coach. He was the Patriots' wide receivers coach in 2019. He also was a special teams assistant in New England from 2012 through 2014, and then special teams coordinator from 2015 through 2019.