ATLANTA, GA SEPTEMBER 04: Alabama assistant coach Bill O’Brien prior to the start of the Chick-fil-A Kick-Off Game between the Miami Hurricanes and the Alabama Crimson Tide on September 4, 2021 at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta. Live. (Photo by Rich von Biberstein/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
The New England Patriots announced last week that they are beginning the search for a permanent offensive coordinator.
according to tom curran nbc sports bostonOne name in particular springs to mind, Bill Belichick, and it’s a familiar name to Patriots fans.
Curran says Alabama offensive coordinator Bill O’Brien, who was a Patriots assistant from 2007-11, is the “primary target” for the position.
“There is unanimity on all sides that O’Brien is the best person for the job and – while there are other candidates with qualifications – the familiar ownership and willingness of Mc Jones to return to O’Brien and O’Brien if he has to Worry if you don’t get a job Curran wrote,
O’Brien wasn’t actually the coach of Jones, who left Alabama after the 2020 season, but that’s because he knows a lot about him from his time in Tuscaloosa. Prior to his two seasons with the Crimson Tide, O’Brien served as the head coach of the Houston Texans from 2014 through the first four seasons of 2020.
He went 52–48 in Houston, leading the team to four AFC South titles, but only two playoff wins in six tries. O’Brien previously went 15–9 as Penn State’s head coach in 2012–13.
In his five seasons with the Patriots more than a decade ago, O’Brien started as an offensive analyst, worked his way up to wide receivers and later quarterbacks coach before serving as offensive coordinator in 2011.