Sources: Nick Caley could be hired soon as Patriots' new OC
Sources: Nick Caley could be hired soon as Patriots' new OC originally appeared on NBC Sports Boston
The New England Patriots appear to be closing in on their most important coaching hire outside Jerod Mayo.
Our Tom E. Curran and Phil Perry reported Thursday that Los Angeles Rams tight ends coach Nick Caley is expected to be the Patriots' next offensive coordinator, and that an announcement could come very soon.
"Indications are that he is going to be (the Patriots' offensive coordinator)," Curran said of Caley on a new Patriots Talk Podcast. "Both through our sources, and (the Boston Herald's) Andrew Callahan said that he was a finalist for the job ... the indication is he's going to be the guy.
"My understanding is the hiring is 'imminent' of someone; I don't have the individual's name, but I'm guessing that it's Nick Caley. They are close."
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Caley spent eight seasons as an assistant in Foxboro from 2015 to 2022, winning two Super Bowls with New England before joining the Rams in 2023. The 41-year-old actually interviewed for the Patriots' offensive coordinator opening prior to the 2022 season before Matt Patricia assumed play-calling duties, and was involved in New England's OC search last January before the team hired Bill O'Brien instead.
Caley is set to be the Patriots' fourth offensive coordinator in four seasons, but Perry believes he's a good fit for Foxboro based on his coaching style and unique experience.
"I think he'd be a good hire because he's an intelligent guy by all accounts," Perry said of Caley. "Players who have worked with him here in New England that I've spoken to really love him.
"I think it's his style, it's his approach that would attract Jerod to working with him, because I think they are of a similar mind in terms of, 'We want make our players understand that we care about them. That's how we're going to motivate them. That's how we're going to get the best out of them. And then we're going to use our brains ... to leverage all of their skills, help them improve, show them that we are making them money, allowing them to put their best selves on tape. And that's how we're going to approach this rebuild that is going to be loaded with young players who need good coaching.'"
While Caley has never elevated to higher than tight ends coach in the NFL, he does have the experience of working with some bright coaching minds, from Dante Scarnecchia and Josh McDaniels in New England to Sean McVay in Los Angeles.
"He's worked very closely with one of the greatest offensive line coaches of all time in Dante Scarnecchia when it comes to Patriots blocking schemes," Perry noted. "He's worked with one of the best offensive coordinators in recent NFL history in Josh McDaniels, who has run a variety of different schemes. It's been a similar language for a long time here in New England under Josh McDaniels, but he ran just about every method of offense that you could run when Tom Brady was here -- outside of the zone read stuff, and he ran a bunch of that with Cam Newton (in 2020).
"So, he's got some great references, he's an energetic guy, he's a young guy. I think it would be a good hire."
Caley's former co-worker, ex-Rams special teams assistant Jeremy Springer, will join him in New England as the Patriots' special teams coordinator, while DeMarcus Covington is set to be the defensive coordinator in a coaching overhaul for the 2024 Patriots.
Also in this episode of Patriots Talk:
Just how long will this Patriots rebuild take?
Are the Patriots not ready to draft a QB third overall?
Reaction to Bill Belichick not having a coaching job
