Josh McDaniels had a pretty wild few days after the 2017 NFL season came to a close. Right after the Patriots lost Super Bowl LII, it was reported that McDaniels had agreed to sign on as the Indianapolis Colts head coach.
But two days after it was announced that he would be shipping off to Indianapolis, McDaniels said he was returning to New England to take over his old position under Belichick instead.
The decision caused a lot of speculation in the sports world. With rumors swirling about Belichick being potentially close to retirement, many started guessing that McDaniels was being considered for a head coaching position in New England instead.
So after almost two months of wondering what went on behind closed doors, McDaniels is finally offering up some insight into what happened during those high stakes 48 hours.
He gave an interview with the Boston Globe this week.
“I wasn’t 100 percent sure what the future was,” McDaniels said. “I just hadn’t had any clarity on that. So, where did I fit in? Were there any plans? I just didn’t have much clarity on what my role was here moving forward. Once I heard from Robert and Bill on that Tuesday, it just gave me reason to pause and consider this whole situation.”
He didn’t disclose exactly what Patriots owner Bob Kraft and head coach Bill Belichick told him but he did say his contract was slightly altered. And if I had to take a guess, I’d say it was probably sweetened to compel him to stay in Foxborough.
“The opportunity to stay here and work for who I think is the greatest owner in sports and the best head football coach in the history of our game, to work with the best quarterback that has ever played…Look, I’m privileged to have the opportunity to do that and when they kind of crystallized that — ‘Hey, here’s what we see going forward and here’s how we would like you to fit into it’ — it gave me a reason to stop and say, ‘All right, what’s the best decision for me?’ And certainly it was difficult. But I made the decision on my own, nobody pushed me into it,” he elaborated.
McDaniels may not be a very popular figure in Indianapolis right now but it sounds like he’ll remain pretty well-liked in New England. He clarified that it “was never” his “intention to go into this and put anybody in an awkward position or do any harm,” but he says he’s happy with his decision to remain with the NFL team he started with.
But, as is routine, the Patriots staff will probably remain tight-lipped about their thoughts for the future of the coaching staff.
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