Patriots reportedly hiring Thomas Brown as tight ends coach, pass game coordinator

FOXBORO — The New England Patriots interviewed Thomas Brown for their offensive coordinator position before ultimately going back to Josh McDaniels for a third time. But Brown will still fill out a spot on Mike Vrabel’s coaching staff.

The Patriots are hiring Brown to be the team’s tight ends coach and pass game coordinator, according to Tom Pelissero of NFL Network. Brown will now work with McDaniels as they look to continue Drake Maye’s development in the quarterback’s second NFL season.

Brown will replace Bob Bicknell as the team’s tight ends coach, who held the role for one year under Jerod Mayo. The Patriots actually got some solid production out of tight ends Hunter Henry and Austin Hooper last season, as Henry led the team with 674 receiving yards and tied DeMario Douglas for the team lead with 66 receptions. Hooper had 45 receptions for 476 yards and three touchdowns (tied for the most on the team), but will be a free agent this offseason.

Who is Thomas Brown?

Brown, 38, is coming off an interesting year with the Chicago Bears. He was hired ahead of the season to be the team’s pass game coordinator, but was promoted to the team’s offensive coordinator when Shane Waldron was fired on Nov. 12. He was only in that position for a few weeks, as he was promoted again to head coach when Matt Eberflus was fired on Nov. 29 after a 4-8 start o the season.

Brown was 1-4 as head coach of the Bears, and earned his only win in Week 18 over the Green Bay Packers.

Prior to joining the Bears, Brown was the offensive coordinator for the Carolina Panthers in 2023. The Panthers and the Patriots were tied for last in the NFL at 13.9 points per game in 2023.

Brown was on Sean McVay’s staff with the Los Angeles Rams from 2020-2022 as a running backs coach, tight ends coach, and assistant head coach. He was both a running backs coach and assistant head coach when the Rams won Super Bowl LVI over the Cincinnati Bengals at the end of the 2021 season.

Before breaking into the NFL with the Rams, Brown spent nearly a decade as a college coach at Georgia, Chattanooga, Marshall, Wisconsin, Miami, and South Carolina. Brown also played three seasons in the NFL as a running back for the Atlanta Falcons and Cleveland Browns, though he never saw any action in a game.

Mike Vrabel’s Patriots coaching staff

Vrabel has filled his three coordinator positions in New England, as was announced by the team last week:

Offensive coordinator: Josh McDaniels
Defensive coordinator: Terrell Williams
Special teams coordinator: Jeremy Springer

In addition to adding Brown, former Browns coach Ashton Grant was reportedly brought in to be New England’s new quarterbacks coach. Tony Dews and Riley Larkin were also reportedly added to the offensive staff in unspecified roles, though the Patriots have not yet confirmed or announced those hirings.

Zak Kuhr, Clinton McMillan, and Kevin Richardson have reportedly joined Vrabel’s defensive staff under Williams, though those have not been announced by the team yet either.