The Tampa Bay Buccaneers can officially cross one name off of the list of potential replacements for the team’s vacant offensive coordinator position.
Per Adam Schefter and Chris Low at ESPN, Alabama Crimson Tide offensive coordinator and quarterback coach Bill O’Brien is expected to return to the New England Patriots as their new offensive coordinator next season.
Alabama OC/QB coach Bill O’Brien has returned to New England and is being named the Patriots offensive coordinator, sources tell @ClowESPN and me. O’Brien was a Patriots’ assistant coach from 2007-2011, and now returns to coach Mac Jones, whom he briefly worked with at Alabama.
O’Brien acted as the Patriots’ offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach during the 2011 season, working closely with quarterback Tom Brady. The duo enjoyed success during their time working together, with Brady throwing for 5,235 yards and 39 touchdowns that season. O’Brien also was Brady’s quarterback coach during his MVP season in 2010.
The Tampa Bay Times’ Rick Stroud speculated in a January 7 story that if Brady decided to re-sign with the Bucs, the team could be able to land O’Brien as its offensive coordinator.
“[O’Brien] had some famous sideline scraps with Brady, who nonetheless prefers to be challenged with hard coaching,” Stroud wrote. “O’Brien also is very close friends with Bucs general manager Jason Licht from their days of working together in New England.”
Buccaneers Nearly Landed Bill O’Brien as Offensive Coordinator in 2022
Sometimes, timing truly is everything in the game of life.
Last offseason, Byron Leftwich was a leading candidate to become the new head coach for the Jacksonville Jaguars.
Stroud suggested that if Leftwich ultimately took the Jags head coaching gig, O’Brien would’ve been the organization’s plan at the offensive coordinator position.
“If Byron Leftwich had become head coach of the Jaguars last season, the Bucs’ plan was to hire Alabama offensive coordinator Bill O’Brien to replace him in Tampa Bay,” said Stroud wrote January 24. “It stands to reason after firing Leftwich last Thursday that O’Brien would have been a preferred addition to Todd Bowles’ staff, especially if he is hoping to convince quarterback Tom Brady to play here one more season.”
After the Bucs enjoyed a very productive season on the offensive side of the football in 2021, finishing 2nd in the league in total yards per game (405.9) and points per game (30.1) and first in yards passing per game (307.6), the Bucs offensive production plummetted in 2022, finishing dead last in the league in rushing yards per game (76.9) and 25th in the league in points per game (18.9) scoring 11 fewer points per game.
The inability to secure O’Brien as the Bucs’ offensive coordinator could negatively play into Brady’s decision-making process for the upcoming 2023 season.
Tom Brady Gives an Emphatic Update On His Future
Speaking of Brady’s decision-making process, he provided a very direct response on the January 23 episode of his “Let’s Go!” podcast with Jim Gray and Larry Fitzgerald.
“Jim, if I knew what I was gonna (expletive) do, I’d have already (expletive) done it,” said Brady. “I’m taking it one day at a time.”
Whether you believe Brady’s response to the question regarding his football future was genuine or not, he does appear to be a fit frustrated with questions regarding his future at the moment.
Brady is set to become an unrestricted free agent when the new league year begins on March 15.
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Bucs Miss Out on Key Offensive Coordinator Candidate to Replace Byron Leftwich