It’s Patriots’ Day in the great state of Massachusetts!
Runners of the Boston Marathon are preparing their minds and bodies for the trying toll of 26.2 miles.
Red Sox players and fans alike are readying for the traditional albeit unique late-morning holiday first pitch at Fenway Park.
And Celtics Nation is sleeping off the Easter Day celebration that came with Jayson Tatum’s buzzer-beating layup to take a 1-0 lead in the playoff series against the Nets and their middle finger-throwing miserable superstar Kyrie Irving.
Ironically, other than the team kicking off its voluntary offseason workout program at Gillette Stadium, the Patriots are the team with the least going on this Patriots’ Day.
Of course in some ways the Patriots are always top of mind in the Boston sports world. After all, New England is just 10 days away from the 2022 NFL Draft, another critical opportunity to continue its climb back toward the top of the NFL mountain.
In light of the holiday commemorating the events opening the Revolutionary War and a few days after Matt Groh held his first pre-Draft press conference since being promoted to New England’s director of player personnel, we started thinking about the hierarchy of the Patriots organization. As such, here’s a springtime look at the five most important people in New England’s power structure, with one interesting name that will probably be bothersome to at least a few outsiders.
1 – The Kraft family: Robert Kraft combined his passion as a Patriots season ticket holder and business acumen into the perfect ownership combination in New England. The team was immediately better off the day Kraft took over and has built an unprecedented modern NFL dynasty. As the patriarch of the team ages, his son Jonathan Kraft has taken over a significant leadership role. The Kraft family’s stewardship of the Patriots should remain strong.
2 – Bill Belichick: When Robert Kraft made the polarizing decision to hire Belichick in 2000, it was clearly a crossroads for both the team and the former Browns head coach. It was also the start of something truly special, something we may never witness again in any sport. Kraft, Belichick and quarterback Tom Brady created a triumvirate that brought two decades of unbelievable success. Belichick, overseeing both the personnel department and coaching, turned nearly all things football into success. Brady may be gone, but Belichick remains as the central voice and leader in Foxborough. Heck with no coordinator on either offense or defense, Belichick may be doing more now than ever before.
3 – Matt Patricia: Here’s where the rankings get interesting.
Patricia is the former New England defensive coordinator and failed Lions head coach who returned to the organization a year ago as a senior football advisor. What he appears to be is Belichick’s right hand man, both in coaching and personnel. Patricia reportedly will coach the offensive line this year, a spot he hasn’t be involved with since 2005. Groh noted Patricia has played a key role in the personnel department this offseason. Like Belichick, Patricia seems to have his hands in every aspect of the Patriots leading some to believe that he could be on track to replace his 70-year-old longtime boss and mentor at some point down the road. Whether that’s true or not, Patricia’s important multifaceted role right now simply is what it is whether fans like it or not.
4 – Mac Jones: In terms of on-field potential, the second-year quarterback Jones is the Patriots’ present and future. Trite as it may be, the franchise QB is the most important position in all of sports, never mind within a singular organization. If Jones develops into an elite mainstay, it will stabilize everything else in Foxborough. If he doesn’t develop and measure up to the challenge of becoming a true foundational piece then all the other people on this list will see their jobs get much more difficult.
5 – Matt Groh: A year ago Groh was part of a supposedly more collaborative effort that led to an impressive offseason in terms of both free agency and the draft that earned Belichick Executive of the Year status. Now, with Dave Zeigler having moved on to Las Vegas with Josh McDaniels, Groh ascends to the top of the Patriots personnel department. He made it quite clear that Belichick is still very much the G.M. in New England, but Groh will get a chunk of the blame or the credit depending on how this year’s draft pans out. Fair or not that’s the reality of his new key role in the power structure at Gillette Stadium. And New England’s roster is certainly in need of another solid draft to attempt to inject youthful speed and talent into a roster with plenty of holes to fill. Groh is the one now tasked with aiding Belichick in that important process, even if the collaboration continues.
