Brian Hoyer spent eight seasons in New England.
Hoyer spent eight seasons in New England over his career. / Jeff Hanisch-Imagn Images
Now that the New England Patriots officially have their new head coach in Mike Vrabel, it’s time for them to fill out the rest of the coaching staff. One name that’s been floated as an option to be their next offensive coordinator is Josh McDaniels.
McDaniels—who’s had two previous coaching stints in Foxborough—would be quarterback Drake Maye’s second OC in as many years, which could raise concerns regarding a lack of continuity on offense. One way to ease said concern? Adding a veteran to the QB room.
Brian Hoyer, a longtime backup quarterback to Tom Brady, played under McDaniels in both New England and Las Vegas over his NFL career. The 39-year-old was recently asked if he’d have any interest in returning to the Patriots to help Maye learn the system:
“I mean it depends on what that looks like,” Hoyer said on his Quick Snap podcast this week. “I’m never going to say never. I have so much respect for Josh and what I’ve learned from him. And really when I look at my career, I was fortunate to be around a lot of great coaches.”
Brian Hoyer eying a return to football 👀👀 pic.twitter.com/DacsgInY9A
— The Quick Snap (@quicksnappod) January 17, 2025
“The one thing about Josh is he’s very adaptable,” he continued. “And that’s what the offense is built on. So the one thing that people don’t fully understand is like, everybody runs the same plays. It’s how do you marry them together? How do you do those things? So I’ve learned from a lot of great coaches—Josh is at the top of that list.”
Hoyer last played in the NFL as a member of McDaniels’ Raiders in 2023.
At age 39 and amid a transition to the media world, it’s probably not likely that he’d return to football—but as Hoyer even said: Never say never.