Patriots' McDaniels: 'Blessing' to take year off football

New England Patriots offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels said Thursday that taking a year off from coaching will help him better prepare for the 2025 season.

"I think it was something you don't ever think about doing, but I would say it's a blessing to have the time to go back and look at what you've been through in terms of the changes and different highs, lows," McDaniels told reporters, according to Tom Carroll of WEEI.

McDaniels most recently served as head coach of the Las Vegas Raiders but was fired eight games into the 2023 season. He finished his two-year tenure in Las Vegas with a 9-16 record.

The 48-year-old returned to New England in January after new head coach Mike Vrabel hired him to run the offense. McDaniels had spent 13 years as the Patriots' offensive coordinator during two separate stints starting in 2006.

"You look back at the past in terms of what we've done schematically and what the league is doing now strategically," McDaniels added.

"I had a really good opportunity last year to watch football without a lot of deadlines, which was a new, interesting opportunity for me and just see different things that were coming up throughout the course of the league."

McDaniels will be tasked with revamping an offense that ranked 27th in EPA/play and 30th in points per game. The Patriots' front office added Stefon Diggs this offseason to give Drake Maye a veteran pass-catcher. They also brought in offensive linemen Morgan Moses and Garrett Bradbury.

"I always start each year with a fresh perspective," McDaniels said. "I wasn't here last year, and I know every player on our team is going to get a fresh start. We're going to give everybody our best, and our job is to take the guys that we have on our offense and make them better."