New England Patriots head coach Mike Vrabel constructed his coaching staff much differently than how Jerod Mayo did a year ago.

Vrabel sought out coaches with plenty of experience while Mayo’s staff was filled with some coaches taking on roles for the first time. Four coaches on Vrabel’s staff have had head coaching experience in the NFL.

That group includes Thomas Brown along with Josh McDaniels, Doug Marrone and senior defensive assistant Ben McAdoo.

McDaniels will reprise his role as Patriots offensive coordinator and Marrone will coach the offensive line while McAdoo returns for a second season in New England. Brown, who took over for Matt Eberflus in the middle of the season last year, got an interesting title as he was named the first-ever passing-game coordinator for the Patriots.

And according to ESPN’s Mike Reiss, Vrabel badly wanted Brown on his staff.

“The addition of former Bears interim head coach Thomas Brown, who is the first passing-game coordinator in franchise history and will also work with tight ends, was a hire Vrabel pursued aggressively after interviewing him for the coordinator job,” Reiss wrote.

Brown only went 1-4 as Chicago’s interim head coach but he was highly regarded for coming up through the NFL coaching ranks under Sean McVay.

Brown spent three seasons on McVay’s staff from 2020-22, coaching running backs for two of them and tight ends for another.

Coaches who have McVay’s fingerprints on them are widely coveted around the league and Brown spent the 2023 season as the offensive coordinator for the Carolina Panthers. Brown didn’t exactly thrive in the role as the Panthers finished last in the league in both points and yards per game.

The Patriots offense has been at the bottom of the league for a few seasons now, giving Brown another chance to make his mark not only on the unit, but perhaps more importantly on Drake Maye.