The Patriots are expected to hire Josh McDaniels as OC under new HC Mike Vrabel, according to NFL Network's Ian Rapoport. It's a homecoming for McDaniels, who had two previous stints with New England. He ran the offense from 2006 to 2008 and then again from 2012 to 2021. The Patriots ranked top eight in points in 12 of McDaniels' 13 seasons and top 11 in yards in 10 of 13. Of course, the majority of those offenses were quarterbacked by Tom Brady. In three years without Brady, McDaniels' Patriots finished eighth, 27th, and sixth in points; fifth, 27th, and 15th in yards. McDaniels also spent two seasons as Broncos HC (2009-2010), one as Rams OC (2011), and two as Raiders HC (2022-2023). None of those teams ranked better than 12th in yards or points. McDaniels has shown the ability to morph his offense to fit the personnel, with eight top-10 finishes in rushing yards and 10 top-10 finishes in passing yards. He's not as exciting for QB Drake Maye and this Patriots offense as Ben Johnson or even Liam Coen would have been. But McDaniels is at least a known commodity and should bring some stability to this offense in 2025. We'll see what the team does this offseason to upgrade the offensive line and skill positions.

Patriots WR Ja’Lynn Polk (concussion) missed practice all week and is out for Sunday’s game vs. the Jets. The rookie is off to a rough start, catching just 10 of 26 targets for 78 yards and one TD through seven games. Kayshon Boutte, Demario Douglas, and Kendrick Bourne figure to operate as New England’s top three WRs this weekend.

ESPN's Mike Reiss posited this week who the early favorites might be to lead the Patriots at WR. "Former Viking K.J. Osborn ... has positioned himself as an early leader among Patriots receivers," Reiss wrote. "Second-year slot receiver DeMario Douglas appears as quick as ever. Add in [rookie Ja'Lynn] Polk, and that could be the team's top three targets if everyone is healthy." That assessment came amid a longer intro that focused on Polk's work. The second-round pick has reportedly impressed with his work in practice. He -- and the others -- face a seemingly wide-open fight for jobs in a WR corps that stunk last year and didn't spend much on adding to it this offseason.

Patriots WR Kayshon Boutte was arrested for allegedly placing more than 8,900 bets while underaged with a fake account, according to NOLA.com's Wilson Alexander. At least six of those bets were placed on the LSU team Boutte played on. We'll see how the Patriots and the NFL respond to these allegations, but Boutte had very little dynasty value to begin with. He fell to the sixth round of the 2023 draft and caught just two balls as a rookie.