Josh McDaniels took out a full-page ad in The Boston Globe to reflect upon his time with the New England Patriots. McDaniels, who is leaving to coach the Las Vegas Raiders, had no shortage of major life events while working for the Patriots, from engagement to marriage to having kids.
He rose up the ranks from a position as a defensive quality control assistant and found himself in the role as offensive coordinator, which he worked from 2006 to 2008 and 2012 through 2021.
“I will miss you, all of you Patriots fans, more than you know. You are the epitome of resilience and the definition of support,” McDaniels wrote in the ad, which The Globe published Wednesday. “…. There is a reason they call Boston the best sports city in the world.”
McDaniels has often addressed the impact of Bill Belichick on his career. The newly-minted Raiders coach had more to say about Belichick.
Josh McDaniels with a full-page ad and lengthy thank you note in today’s @BostonGlobe. Here’s the text: https://t.co/vNcCKc3nE6 pic.twitter.com/8mzT4yWWrK
— Ben Volin (@BenVolin) February 16, 2022
“My father, Thom, a Hall of Fame high school football coach in Canton, Ohio, taught me the game of football. Bill taught me how to teach others how to play this game I love, and sculpted me into the coach I am today,” McDaniels wrote. “Bill’s brilliance has been matched in my life only by his generosity; his willingness to share with me invaluable coaching axioms that have shaped and will continue to shape my career and my life immeasurably.”
Though quarterback Tom Brady and McDaniels haven’t worked together for two years, they are inextricably tied, with the two men sharing an offense for 13 seasons. They were extremely tight friends. McDaniels addressed the now-retired quarterback, who played for the Buccaneers for the last two seasons.
“I had a front-row seat to watch TB12 play the most important position in all of team sports better than anyone has ever played it. Far more personally significant, almost 2 decades of sharing a game day trench with Tommy forged a close relationship of trust and gave rise to a priceless friendship. Tom is as great as it gets on and off the field, and I appreciate how he’s made me better in so many ways.”
While Belichick was McDaniels’ immediate boss, Patriots owner Robert Kraft runs the operation. And it doesn’t sound like Kraft was removed from the process. Maybe he wasn’t making football decisions, but Kraft was engaging consistently with his staffers during McDaniels’ tenure.
“RKK is a GOAT to me because of the life lessons he’s taught me and because of how warm and caring he has always been to me and my family,” McDaniels wrote. “He treated me like a son, and I always felt his genuine support and love.”
