Morning Sports Update
McDaniels had been reportedly “calling coaches around the league about putting together a staff.”
Josh McDaniels prior to a Patriots game in Sept. 2021. AP Photo/Stew Milne
The Bruins lost to the Avalanche 4-3 in overtime on Wednesday night. Boston led 3-1 going into the third period, but surrendered two late goals.
Tonight at 7 pm, the US men’s national team faces El Salvador in a World Cup qualifier in Columbus, Ohio. Revolution goalkeeper Matt Turner is expected to start.
The latest on Josh McDaniels: After it briefly seemed that the Patriots might lose both director of player personnel Dave Ziegler and offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels to the Raiders, the scene appears to have changed.
Ziegler was seen as a potential candidate for Las Vegas’ vacant general manager position. And follow-up reports indicated that McDaniels might then be a target for the team’s head coaching role.
However, according to Vic Tafur, who covers the Raiders for The Athletic, the interest in the Patriots’ duo has cooled.
“McDaniels apparently had been calling coaches around the league about putting together a staff, but it appears something happened in the last 24 hours,” Tafur wrote. “League sources don’t know if the issue was about compensation or the power structure in Las Vegas or both, but it seems Ziegler and McDaniels are not the leaders in the clubhouse anymore.”
With the Raiders casting interest in other directions, the Patriots might be able to retain personnel heading into 2022.
Looking at Mac Jones’s potential growth in his second season, there are obvious benefits in keeping the Patriots’ longtime offensive coordinator for continuity.
trivia: McDaniels, as head coach of the Broncos, picked the second quarterback of the 2010 draft (25th overall). Name that quarterback.
(Answer at the bottom).
Hint: He eventually led the Broncos to a division title in 2011 (following McDaniels’s departure), but was replaced the following year.
More from Boston.com:
Bruce Cassidy and Bruins players following Wednesday’s game:
Hasselmania: Massachusetts natives Matt and Tim Hasselbeck—both former quarterbacks who are now ESPN football analysts—did some arm wrestling on Wednesday.
On this day: In 2000, the Patriots completed a trade with the Jets for Bill Belichick.
Having been named as Bill Parcells’s successor earlier in January, Belichick famously quit after less than 24 hours, announcing it in a memorable press conference.
It quickly became clear that Belichick wanted to end up in New England, coaching the Patriots. The only problem for him was that the Jets still held contractual control, meaning that a deal between the two AFC East rivals would have to be worked out.
An additional problem was that the personal relationship between Parcells and Patriots owner Robert Kraft had deteriorated years earlier (prior to Parcells bolting New England for New York).
After a prolonged standoff, Parcells decided to cut a deal, humorously calling Kraft to announce that it was “Darth Vader” on the phone. The two called a truth on the “border war” between the two teams, and finalized an agreement.
The terms ended up being:
patriots got:
- Belichick
- 2001 5th round pick
- 2002 7th round pick
jets got:
- 2000 1st round pick
- 2001 4th round pick
- 2001 7th round pick
And while in the moment it appeared that it was a draft pick win for the Jets, the Patriots have clearly enjoyed the better results over the ensuing decades. Belichick even made a joke about the saga during his Patriots introductory press conference, signally his relief at the end of the episode.
daily highlight: Brad Marchand scored on a perfectly placed shot to give Boston a 3-1 lead on Wednesday.
Trivia answer: Tim Tebow
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George is Digismak’s reported cum editor with 13 years of experience in Journalism