The Patriots hired some old friends to their coaching staff this offseason, and one of their former stars is fully supportive of those decisions.
First it was Mike Vrabel, the former Patriots linebacker, who was brought in as head coach. Then, former offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels got his old job back for the third time.
Four-time Super Bowl champion Rob Gronkowski, in an interview with NBC, outlined why those decisions -- specifically pairing McDaniels with quarterback Drake Maye -- will be positive for the franchise.
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"I think Josh McDaniels was the perfect fit to be the offensive coordinator, especially in that position that they are in right now with Drake Maye at the quarterback position," Gronkowski explained. "As a rookie, he just showed phenomenal upside. He's a guy that wants to learn, and who better to learn from than Josh McDaniels? (The coach) who helped develop Tom Brady throughout his whole entire career.
"He knows the offense in and out, he knows how to put guys in the best situation to succeed and make plays. So, that was one of the best hires that Mike Vrabel could've made was Josh McDaniels as his offensive coordinator."
Working with Brady is obviously his biggest achievement, as the pair won three Super Bowls with McDaniels calling plays. But McDaniels' more recent work with New England after the GOAT left town is perhaps more notable.
In 2020, the Patriots' offense was completely redesigned to work around Cam Newton -- a mobile quarterback who compares more similarly to Maye than Brady does. They went 7-9 with a few close losses that ultimately could've put them in postseason contention.
One year later, McDaniels switched up his offense again to accommodate rookie Mac Jones. That led to a 10-7 season, four games scoring more than 35 points and a surprise wild card berth. For context, the Patriots haven't been back to the playoffs since then and they've only scored 35 points once in three years.
Gronkowski, who played seven seasons for McDaniels and made four Super Bowls in that span, knows that it's not all on the coaching to turn things around in Foxboro. The roster needs an infusion of talent to have any chance at a quick turnaround.
"They have to address the offensive line," Gronkowski said when asked about the Patriots' biggest needs. "They have to get a couple of guys with a street fighting mentality, so they can control the line of scrimmage.
"On top of that, they need a No. 1 wide receiver, a No. 2 wide receiver, so that Drake Maye can air it out and (let) those guys go make some plays so they can go down the field and score touchdowns.
"So, a couple of skill players and a couple of offensive linemen. And they have a lot of salary cap space. They have $130 million in cap space, so Mike Vrabel is looking at a pretty solid situation going into his first year as head coach of the Patriots."
There will be plenty of opportunities for the Patriots to address those weaknesses this offseason, as Gronkowski noted. The team holds the most salary cap space in the league to go along with the No. 4 overall pick.
With the Super Bowl set for this Sunday, the offseason is almost ready to kick into high gear. The NFL Scouting Combine is at the end of the month before free agency in March and the draft in April.