What hiring Adrian Klemm to their coaching staff means for the Patriots

Feb 6, 2023 - 5:16 PM

The New England Patriots’ offensive coaching staff continues to take shape. The last piece added to the mix following coordinator Bill O’Brien and Will Lawing, whose role has yet to be announced, is Adrian Klemm.

The 45-year-old, who most recently worked as an assistant at the University of Oregon, will reportedly join the Patriots. He originally interviewed for the offensive coordinator gig that went to O’Brien, but was brought back to possibly coach the O-line. The belief is that he will do just that in 2023, even though nothing has been made official by the club as of right now.

Still, we can work with the information available to find out what hiring Klemm means for the Patriots.

New England’s offensive line adds an experienced coach: Whether he will fully take over as O-line coach or work in tandem with previous assistant Billy Yates remains to be seen. What we do know, however, is that Klemm will play a significant role in (re-)shaping the Patriots’ line moving forward while under coordinator Bill O’Brien.

Klemm brings considerable experience to the table, having coached offensive lines at SMU, UCLA and with the Pittsburgh Steelers before joining Oregon in Dec. 2021. Additionally, he has been heavily involved in run-game coordination: he served in that capacity throughout his five-year stint with the Bruins, and also with the Ducks last season.

Billy Yates’ future is in the spotlight: Yates joined the Patriots as assistant offensive line coach in 2021, originally working under Carmen Bricillo before assisting Matt Patricia last season. He is well-respected by his players and gradually took on a bigger role as 2022 went along, but his future is still uncertain.

Keeping him around would make sense for continuity’s sake, but adding Klemm to the equation might change his outlook. For what it is worth, however, Yates was part of the team’s contingent at the East-West Shrine Bowl — a sign that he might stay put in some capacity moving forward.

Klemm becomes the latest ex-Patriot to return a coach: Adrian Klemm and Billy Yates have one thing in common: both worked for New England as active players and now coaches. They are not the only members of the team’s current staff with a similar career path.

Wide receivers coach Troy Brown and running backs coach Vinnie Sunseri also went down that road, as did linebackers coach Jerod Mayo and defensive coaching assistant V’Angelo Bentley. That means that 35 percent of the current assistants on the team’s coaching roster have experience also playing for the Patriots.

The Patriots are willing to invest in their staff: Klemm filled a prominent role at Oregon in 2022, serving not just as offensive line coach but also as run game coordinator and associate head coach. His compensation reflected his importance to the operation, as he was reportedly set to earn $850,000 this upcoming year.

Needless to say that New England will pay him more than that. How much exactly will probably never be known outside of One Patriot Place, but his salary reaching seven-figures has to be expected.

Matt Patricia officially loses another role: One main’s gain, is another man’s loss. With Klemm coaching the Patriots’ offensive line moving forward, Matt Patricia will lose another of the roles he held in 2022. Besides working as play-caller — a job that will be held by coordinator Bill O’Brien moving forward — he also coached the offensive line.

As noted above, assistant Billy Yates had an active hand in that as well but Patricia was the lead man in title. Now, that title will likely go to Klemm.