Jon Voon at Home of the Chiefs has reservations about the new regime, and points out all the Patriot-related coaching failures in recent years.

I really like Matt Cassel, but he’s no Tom Brady. I really like Todd Haley, but he’s no Bill Belichick. That begs the question: if you take both Brady and Belichick out of the Patriots’ equation, how strong would the Patriot Way really be? When I look at a guy like Josh McDaniels and some of the goof-ups he’s already made, you can’t help but wonder if the guy is going to be the next in a long line of unimpressive Patriots coordinators who fail as head coaches in other systems: Charlie Weis, Romeo Crennel, Eric Mangini.

McDaniels is several years younger than me, so I have all the faith in the world that he’s an immature moron with idiotic tendencies. I mean, didn’t he start as a film production assistant? And now he’s the head coach of one of the NFL’s best franchises?

I love this new NFL. People think that merely working for a successful organization infuses you with the right stuff.

Other links of note today:

* The boys at Pro Football Talk discuss the Peppers-to-Pats rumors

It didn’t take long. Just a few short seasons after their last Super Bowl victory and one year after setting NFL records on offense, and the Patriots find themselves in the position of losing more staff than usual for any time under the Belichick era.

With the departure of Dom Capers this week, the Patriots have now seen four coaches or front office members leave this season; Capers, Brad Seely, Josh McDaniels and Scott Pioli.

Perhaps the biggest impact will be from Pioli’s departure, just one season removed from Thomas Dimitroff, the former Patriots director of college scouting in 2007. Certainly the names of former coordinators, Eric Mangini (2006), Charlie Weis (2005) and Romeo Crennel (2005) must be considered when assessing losing talented employees, but Pioli is perhaps the glue that held it all together.

Here’s a look at where each has landed:

Dom Capers (Secondary, Special Assistant). 1 year in New England
– Named Green Bay defensive coordinator.
Spent one season in New England as a special assistant and secondary coach assisting in coordinating multiple rookies and first year players into the Patriots defense after the team was beset by injuries.

Brad Seely (Special Teams). 11 years in New England
 – Named Cleveland Browns special teams coach and assistant head coach.
Seely directed the Patriots to a top 5 finish in return yardage in 2008, while also tutoring All Pro Stephen Gostkowski – the second Patriots kicker under Seely to earn Pro Bowl honors (Adam Vinatieri was the other).

The Denver Broncos will be holding a press conference to announce Josh McDaniels as the team’s new head coach Monday evening.  McDaniels, 32, is the former offensive coordinator for the New England Patriots.

McDaniel’s former boss, Patriots head coach Bill Belichick, released a statement about  McDaniels:

"Josh McDaniels is one of the finest people and brightest, most talented coaches I have ever worked with. Since joining us eight years ago, Josh performed a variety of roles and excelled in every one of them. Between his work on defense, in scouting, player evaluation and coordinating the offense, Josh is a very well-rounded coach whose outstanding body of work speaks for itself.  He is the product of a pure football environment which is evident in his approach to the game. On behalf of the entire Patriots organization, we thank Josh for tremendous success in New England and congratulate him and the McDaniels family for this most deserving opportunity for advancement."

McDaniels takes over a position formerly held by another offensive minded coach, Mike Shanahan. 
 

UPDATE 1:04 am:  A team source confirmed the report, Josh McDaniels will be the new head coach of the Denver Broncos.  More news will be available tomorrow (or today, technically)

According to a report from ESPN, the Denver Broncos have decided to hire New England Patriots offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels.  The report confirms recent speculation that McDaniels was the front runner for the position; and was believed to be one of two finalists along with Minnesota Vikings defensive coordinator Leslie Frazier.

The speculation that McDaniels might be the Broncos new head coach rose to a new level when reports surfaced that the Broncos met with the 32-year old assistant in New England on Thursday. 

McDaniels played college football at John Carroll University in Ohio and was an early candidate of the Cleveland Browns, interviewing with Brown owner Randy Lerner. Cleveland had an opening after letting former Patriots assistant Romeo Crennel go after a 4-12 season.

McDaniels was an assistant with Patriots head coach Bill Belichick’s close friend Nick Saban at Michigan State before he joined the Patriots staff in 2001.  In eight seasons McDaniels moved from the Personnel department (2001) to defensive assistant (2002-03) to quarterbacks coach (2004) and then offensive coordinator (2006).

According to the Denver Post, Patriots special assistant coach Dom Capers will join McDaniels in Denver.  Capers was a head coach of the Carolina Panthers (1995-98) and Houston Texans (2001-05). He joined the Patriots in 2008 after two seasons in Miami.

The New England Patriots might be out of the playoffs, but there is plenty of news to report: Scott Pioli’s job hunt continues, for the second week; Offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels has been on more interviews and veteran linebacker Tedy Bruschi wants to return.

Pioli Watch Continues

Patriots Vice President of Player Personnel Scott Pioli has yet to make a decision, but the decision may be made for him already in one locale – Cleveland. Pioli was believed to be the Browns leading candidate to take over their vacant GM position. 

The Browns have closed in on their next head coach, one with NFL experience rather than the one Pioli reportedly prefers.  Eric Mangini, former Patriots assistant coach and recently fired New York Jets head man is the frontrunner to land the position of head coach of the Cleveland Browns, and the prospect of having Mangini as their next head coach diminishes the likelihood of Pioli accepting any job offer Cleveland may make. 

Cleveland owner Randy Lerner cleaned house this year after watching his team collapse to finish just 4-12 in a state of disarray reeling from injuries. Head Coach Romeo Crennel and GM Phil Savage were both let go after four disappointing seasons.   The pair finished their tenure in Cleveland with a 25-40 record winning just once at home this year.  Fan apathy had reached a new level with scores of empty seats in the stands from a fan base known for its sellouts even in horrible weather conditions.

Patriots offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels is drawing interest from a number of teams looking for a new head coach.  The Patriots assistant coach was widely considered one of the top young coaching prospects last year after directing an offense which outscored every team in NFL history.  

When the Patriots lost Tom Brady, many thought they’d flounder, but between Brady’s replacement Matt Cassel and McDaniels, the team not only survived the loss of Brady, they became dangerous.  

Cassel obviously deserves most of the credit for managing the offense, but league insiders have credited the job McDaniels has done to get his quarterback ready.  Few believed the Patriots had someone capable of running last season’s offense, but McDaniels and Bill Belichick proved those assumptions were wrong.

McDaniels met with the Cleveland Browns today according to team insiders. Cleveland papers have since documented the meeting.  

Here is the latest AP report on the meeting.

McDaniels is also a candidate for the Broncos and  Lions openings.   

Contrary to popular reports here in Boston, McDaniels is NOT a shoe-in should Scott Pioli land the job in either Cleveland or Kansas City.

Pioli Update coming tonight. A source close to the situation tells me the decision is about to happen one way or the other.
 

Pioli Interviewing In Cleveland

Patriots VP of Player Personnel is in Cleveland for an interview today according to a source familiar with the situation and confirmed through report from the Associated Press.  That’s good news for Browns fans, and not so good news for Patriots fans. 

Considered one of the top talent evaluators in the league, Pioli is high on Cleveland owner Randy Lerner’s wish list. Pioli is also gathering attention from other teams in the league, which he’s likely to explore if Lerner is lets him leave town without a contract in hand.  The Chiefs are looking for new man after the resignation of Carl Petersen, and what I’m hearing from sources close to the situation in Kansas City is if Cleveland doesn’t get it done, Clark Hunt will be more than happy to swoop in to land Pioli.

Still, the major obstacle for organizations willing to pony up the cash to pry Pioli out of New England is the subject of total control.  It’s a vague term used to reference the authority to make decisions on personnel and management matters as they relate to the football operations of the organization.  The Patriots haven’t given that control to Pioli, and he hasn’t needed it.  Working with Bill Belichick has enabled Pioli to focus on what he’s good at – evaluating talent.