Detroit Lions Super Bowl LII connections: Matt Patricia
By Ash Thompson
The worst-kept secret in the NFL this offseason is that the Detroit Lions next head coach will be Matt Patricia. He will be serving one last time as the New England Patriots defensive coordinator on Superbowl Sunday.
Sometime next week general manager Bob Quinn will have a press conference announcing the Detroit Lions‘ next head coach. Everyone who cares to know at this point knows who has the job. The only question left of interest is whether he will shave, or wear a suit.
Matt Patricia will be the Lions next head coach but has one more game left to cement his legacy. He will be remembered as the best of the New England Patriots defensive coordinators.
Patricia played offensive line in college, despite his size. He may have grown into the look as a coach, but in his late teens and early twenties, Matt Patricia was barely over 200 lbs. He cut blocked opponents enough to earn the moniker “scissors” among his teammates. That illustrates the defining trait possessed by Matt Patricia. He spends his time finding solutions, not wallowing in problems.
Patricia has served as the defensive play-caller for the New England Patriots since 2010. He did the job for two full seasons before he got the title that normally goes along with it. In 2012 he finally got the Patriots defensive coordinator.
He has kept the Patriots defense competitive through the team’s incredible tendency to jettison their successful defensive draft picks. High impact players like Jamie Collins and Chandler Jones have left via trade. Veterans like Vince Wilfork and Derrell Revis have walked out the door. He has been handed rejects from other teams like Albert Haynesworth, Kyle Van Noy, Brandon Browner, and Jabaal Sheard. His response has been to pull the pencil out from behind his ear and get to work.
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Unlike most connections that can be drawn from the Superbowl participants to the Lions, this one comes from the hopeful future rather than the recesses of a disappointing past. Matt Patricia will be a Lion shortly. We are all hoping that he will continue riding the unending wave of success that has defined his career. We are all hoping he can get the Lions to the same heights he hopes to reach Sunday.