For the first time in 24 years, the New England Patriots are setting sail without six-time Super Bowl-winning head Bill Belichick—and they could be doing so with a current Carolina Panthers staffer.
As reported by NFL Network insider Ian Rapoport on Monday, the Patriots and new head coach Jerod Mayo are planning on interviewing Panthers outside linebackers coach Tem Lukabu for their defensive coordinator job.
Lukabu was hired by Carolina last February. His crowning achievement of the 2023 campaign may have been the career season he helped get out of fourth-year backer Yetur Gross-Matos—who notched bests in sacks (4.5), quarterback hits (10) and tackles for a loss (seven).
The 42-year-old already had a handful of NFL stops in his pocket prior to joining the Panthers. Lukabu served as a defensive assistant for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers from 2012 to 2013, a defensive quality control coach for the San Francisco 49ers in 2016 and 2017 and the linebackers coach for the Cincinnati Bengals in 2019.
He was also the defensive coordinator at Boston College from 2020 to 2022.
