Report: New England Patriots interview Thomas Brown for OC position

On Tuesday, the New England Patriots interviewed Chicago Bears interim coach and offensive coordinator Thomas Brown for their opening at OC under new head coach Mike Vrabel, per NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport. The Patriots hired Vrabel to be their next head coach on Jan. 12.

The Chicago Bears hired Brown in January 2024 to be their passing game coordinator. However, after Shane Waldron was fired, Brown was promoted to offensive coordinator on Nov. 12.

Brown’s climb up the organization’s ladder didn’t stop there, either. Just 17 days later, Brown was named the Bears’ interim head coach after the organization fired head coach Matt Eberflus. Under Eberflus, the Bears went 4-8 in their first 12 games of the season.

The Bears’ record didn’t see much improvement, even after Brown took over. The team went 1-4 under Thomas Brown but did defeat rival Green Bay Packers in the regular-season finale.

Despite the win, the Bears are moving in another direction next season and aren’t naming Brown the team’s permanent head coach. According to Jordan Schultz, the Bears have identified Lions OC Ben Johnson and former Dallas Cowboys head coach Mike McCarthy as the two top options to be their next head coach.

With the Bears’ decision, Brown is fielding interest from other organizations, including the Patriots. Brown has also coached for the Carolina Panthers and Los Angeles Rams. At the collegiate level, Brown has coaching experience at programs such as South Carolina, Wisconsin and Miami.

The Patriots’ interest in Brown could be due to his experience with quarterback Caleb Williams this season. After Brown took over play-calling duties for the Bears, Williams made improvements in each of the following categories: QBR, completion percentage, yards per attempt and touchdown-to-interception ratio.

With quarterback Drake Maye’s career budding in New England, Vrabel may want Thomas to be an integral part of the organization. However, Thomas surely won’t be the only candidate the Patriots look at.

Earlier this week, Patriots.com staff writer Evan Lazar listed Josh McDaniels, Alex Van Pelt, Josh McCown, Nick Caley, Mike LaFleur, Todd Downing, Tim Kelly, Pep Hamilton and Byron Leftwich as other potential top candidates to be the Patriots’ next offensive coordinator.

Whoever is calling plays for the Patriots next season must help the team improve. The Patriots only averaged 291.9 total yards of offense per game this season, the second-least in the NFL.