Rams' Nick Caley 'Well-Positioned' to Become Patriots Offensive Coordinator

The New England Patriots could have both their offensive and defensive coordinator hires made in the coming days.

Could the New England Patriots be closing in on having two of their three coordinating hires?

After a recent report revealed that Jerod Mayo intends to promote current defensive line coach DeMarcus Covington to the defensive coordinator role, ESPN's Mike Reiss believes that he could also be close to finding his offensive play-caller.

"[Nick Caley] is viewed by some close to the process as well-positioned to ultimately lead the offense," Reiss writes about Caley.

Jun 14, 2023; Thousand Oaks, CA, USA; Los Angeles Rams tight ends coach Nick Caley and tight end Christian Sims (46) during minicamp at Cal Lutheran University.  / Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports

Caley, the current Los Angeles Rams tight ends coach, technically isn't an "internal hire" but is close to it. The 41-year-old spent eight seasons in Foxboro before joining the Rams coaching staff last offseason. 

Now he is looking to return to Foxboro, this time as the offensive coordinator, after interviewing for the job under then-coach Bill Belichick following the 2021 season, where Josh McDaniels took the Las Vegas Raiders coaching job.

That search for a new coordinator ended with Belichick infamously naming two previous non-offensive coordinators, Matt Patricia and Joe Judge, as his de facto play-callers. Yet, with Mayo now at the helm in New England, it could be the second time, the charm for Caley. 

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Caley would give Mayo a familiar face on his coaching staff and would check the box of knowing the inner workings of Sean McVay's version of the West Coast offense, which, judging by the candidates the Patriots have interviewed, seems to be a trend. 

Caley has interviewed once with the Patriots so far this offseason and is reportedly set for a second, thus seemingly confirming Reiss's report that he is a frontrunner to land the job.

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