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Will Josh McDaniels ‘jump’ Patriots ship for the Browns? 12.19.12 at 2:57 pm ET
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McDaniels had a stormy run on the Denver sidelines in his first head coaching stint. (AP)

McDaniels had a stormy run on the Denver sidelines in his first head coaching stint. (AP)

FOXBORO — On Tuesday, Josh McDaniels, as he always does, did a lot of talking about the past game and the upcoming opponent for the Patriots offense.

On Wednesday, all of the buzz was about whether this might be the final few weeks of his second stint in New England.

Mary Kay Cabot, the Browns beat reporter for the Cleveland Plain Dealer, tweeted that McDaniels would jump at the chance to coach the Browns.

McDaniels is a native of nearby Canton, Ohio and was a star quarterback for high school powerhouse Canton McKinley, where he played for his father Thom. He was then recruited by and played for John Carroll University in the Cleveland suburbs. He was a wide receiver for John Carroll after being beaten out at quarterback by now-Patriots personnel director Nick Caserio.

The irony here is rich. Last season at this time, it was McDaniels who was allowed out of his offensive coordinator job with the Rams to join the Patriots as a consultant in time for playoffs.

Would this be a distraction? Almost certainly not, since the Patriots have become experts in transition coaching beginning with the 2004 team that lost Romeo Crennel and Charlie Weis at the end of a season that concluded with a win in Super Bowl XXXIX.

Just last season, the Patriots made it back to the Super Bowl with McDaniels working with offensive coordinator Bill O’Brien, who left to take over at Penn State.

Cleveland is the place where Bill Belichick began his head coaching career, and Belichick certainly understands the rich tradition of football in Northeast Ohio, especially for those who grew up with it.

Speculation has ramped up in recent days that the Browns, who are suffering through 4-10 season, are likely to make several upper management changes, with a new CEO already in place in Joe Banner. Michael Lombardi, another Belichick insider, has been rumored to take over as general manager for Tom Heckert, who was hired by outgoing president Mike Holmgren. New Browns owner Jimmy Haslam hired Banner from the Eagles, and Banner is said to be interested in Lombardi.

If Lombardi takes over football operations, then he would likely consider McDaniels on any short list of candidates to take over for Pat Shurmur.

Wide receivers coach Chad O’Shea could be on a list of potential offensive coordinators to fill the void if McDaniels leaves.

And according to Greg Bedard of the Boston Globe, two initial sources said that if Lombardi and McDaniels join forces in Cleveland, “the chances are good that they will attempt to trade for Patriots backup quarterback Ryan Mallett and install him as the franchise quarterback. Brandon Weeden would be out, or in a backup role.”

If it happens, this would be his second NFL head coaching stint. Things started off perfectly in 2009, when his Broncos got out of the gate 6-0, including a miracle win over the Bengals in his first game and an overtime win over the Patriots, when he famously celebrated afterward with a run toward the end zone.

But things fell apart quickly. He lost his next four games and the team finished 8-8 and missed the playoffs. He was 11-17 with the Broncos, fired after a 3-9 start in 2010.

Read More: Cleveland Browns, Josh McDaniels, New England Patriots, nfl Print  |  Bark It Up!  |  Digg It
  • Jspina1982

    this is a joke right, is Mcdaniels looking to make another mistake of leaving NE

  • Jeff

    Josh should stick with the pats and take over for bill when he retires

  • Chrisindanvers

    Nah, I doubt he would leave after this year. He learned his lesson. Several other reports have suggested the same idea as well….but many of the reporters have scoffed at the rumors and insiders have suggested that he’ll likely stay one more year at least.  It would be in his best interests to stay….not only was his head coaching stint reminiscent of Pete Carroll in New England, his last offensive coordinator stint was just as bad. Jumping now and failing might be the end of the line for him in the pros for a while.

  • goodpointguy

    if he leaves this time, they will never invite him back. He wont be seen as dedicated to one team, but to his opportunities.

  • Pats

    “ McDaniels would jump at the chance to coach the Browns.”  lol i hope that’s not true, i rather work at mc donalds than coach the Browns.

  • Pats

    But hey i guess if you want to disappear into the sunset and never be heard from again then that could be a good gig for you Josh.

  • Juiceman1992

    Why would you want to leave New England especially for the browns

  • Dee-fense, dee-fense!

    Why?  Because some football coaches actually want the chance to do things their own way – to actually be head coach.  McDaniels has shown this is something he wants, so we’ll just need to wait and see. 

  • http://sbpra.com/paulvsuffriti Paul V. Suffriti

    Josh would be lost without Brady running the offense. Brady is the one directing traffic on offense. Josh is just on the sideline watching the show. Not sure Josh can rebuild a team without major star players. Fool if he leaves the good gig he has with the Pats.

  • Rayscute

    You guys are ridiculous. The team would have no problem with him leaving. They would package up mallet and get a decent return for him. Probably sitting around here and most likely gonna be so for a few more years. The ownership sees this as a business and wouldn’t hold him leaving against anything. If he left had issues and wanted to come back here i think he would be welcome. They aren’t running the team like everything is a matter of heart rather then business

  • pete

    Rivers you suck as a coach
    Get out of Boston and take Pierce Terry Garnet with you because they are scum

  • Cut the cord with Doc

    Another GAG job in a big game under Doc’s watch… YOU don’t know how to get a team ready!! All you got is “Together” and “Cmon guys” in every timeout…. overrated bum…..

  • Anonymous

    Your thugs almost got beat. Go dress in black for your next funeral. Your team looks like a prison inmate gang.. 0 class.

  • Anonymous

    From Johnny Spygate to Spike Lee. SOS!

  • Yankee27 alpha coward

    Fail. Coward. Hey fatso, how many beatings did you get by kids half your size growing up.? Exactly. A real tough guy…and how many rings have the Knicks got? What was that? I can’t hear you. So now that the C’s are gone, what thread will your pathetic fingers pop up on? The Sox are sure to lose a few games so I guess we can expect you there…..and no matter how many ID’s you use, you’re still the biggest loser in the history of the Internet.

  • Heatpeopleschampions

    Celtics announce KG and Pierce will be back…Leprechaun symbol at half-court to shed the cane….will have a walker

  • Ty

    Don’t you mean Melo with fake injury? Gotta love how absolutely none of the Knicks players even glanced at him, nevermind walked over to him, to see if he was okay. That sure is some basketball “team” NY’s got there.

  • Anonymous

    Thank God, African Handball Season here is over

  • Bruinman86

    When was the last time you made a movie someone actually watched??? LOL

  • Franky

    Reminded me of those old boxing fights, with the old veteran making a last stand to defend his belt. At least they went out fighting. We could analyze the lack of offense, etc. Lets just all step back and say thanks for all the memories from Paul and Kevin, if that was their last games in green, they sure went out fighting.

  • pete

    Paul pierce sucks so bad but because Rivers blo——s him Boston just kept giving the ball to Pierce so he could blow the whole series. Pierce is a waste and did not even try tonight. 14 years he suck with only 1 good year and nobody wants to play with that piece of scum get out of Boston.

  • mikeb

    Celtics suck and will suck for a long time
    Every player on the Celtics is a reject that no other team wanted.
    proof nobody wanted Pierce Garnet or Terry at the trade deadline because they suck

  • Pete is a Mensa student

    Suck an scum no buddy want scum and suck balls cuz him suck and scum when 14 years is nobody wants they scum and suck. Proof I am like below scum and suck nobody wants me proof down wit it. Jiggy. Fresh. Sketchy.

  • Dan in N.

    I’ve been a long C’s fan for many years.. (as with all Boston teams) .. but this game was painfull to watch for me. P.P. is driving me crazy.. He set the tone during the first quarter missing his 3′s.. (live by the 3.. die bye the 3) .. He died.

    Again with the turnovers .. I believe that the game 1 loss is what did this team in.
    It was their game to win.
    I dont know how anyone else feels but I can say that I honestly do not want to see P.P in a C’s jersey again next year..

  • Joshua Jock

    Bye Bye celtics. Have fun in the offseason you old men.. Couldnt comeback like the Red Sox right?? Maybe you need it some steroids like how Manny and Ortiz did for that comeback right??

  • christopher mehegan

    hey,spike do yourself a good huge favor take ur pathetice unused new york knickerbocker trash the knicks are gonna get the new york stuffings knocked out of them by the pacers celtics green and white forever go celtics

  • rilawman

    Thanks for stopping by a-hole!!!

  • Ty

    At this point in his career, Paul just needs a little more support around him, or in other words, someone who can handle the ball! He’s not a point guard for a reason, and you saw some sloppy turnovers from him when he was handling the ball. He’s got to be better, but it’s clear that with Rondo healthy, this is a completely different team, and I don’t think you see Pierce have as many turnovers. I want to see him in a Celtics jersey for life, so I’m a little biased, but I still think it would be a mistake to let him go if he wants to play one more year. He’s had one heck of a career though, that’s for sure.

  • Joshua Jock eats Mikeb

    You mean Arod, Clemens, David Justice, Chuck Knoblach, Andy Pettite, Gay Sheffield….just waiting for Mark Teixeira to get on one of the lists…worthless piece of crap that you are…

  • RP87

    It’s not really a comeback if you don’t win, so spare me one of the greatest comebacks speech

  • Ty

    I think there’s something to be said for how good Rondo’s passes really are… they often turn into assists because of how he delivers them to other guys in rhythm, in the flow of the offense. Maybe Pierce hits some of those shots because they’re simply taken within a better flow of the offense, but it also looked like he basically had no more legs last night. The guy gave everything he had, and that’s really all you can ask for. I wish he had a better game last night, but I appreciate the effort nonetheless.

  • Uncle Buck

    Wow, looky here, trolls on center stage. Funny. Where are they when the teams win. Weird those trolls. Just plain weird.

  • http://www.facebook.com/shanique.mackey Shanique Mackey

    Bring KG and the Truth back let them come of the bench go after Dwight Howard or Al Jefferson and send Rondo to get Josh Smith and sign a good back up point guard.
    Starters RONDO GREEN AL JEFFERSON JOSH SMITH SULLY
    Bench KG PP JET LEE BRADLEY New Point guard T Williamsa Bass

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