Matt Patricia, the three-time Super Bowl champion and Bill Belichick’s right-hand man, came as the keeper of the Patriots’ “secret sauce.” Teams bought into the idea that if you hired him—pencil behind the ear, that analytics-first mindset and all—you are basically getting a Belichick clone. That illusion busted, his stint in Detroit unravelled, and he landed in college football. However, in hindsight, this only worked like a blessing in disguise for him.

Patricia, in his interview with Blake Biscardi of The Silver Bulletin, recalled how the firing helped him learn his personal shortcomings. “I wasn’t my best version,” Patricia recounted. “I think learning that is really important. That’s how you get better as a coach, as a person. When you go into a new building, man, you better leave all that baggage behind,” Patricia added.

Patricia was fired on November 28, 2020, along with his GM Bob Quinn, ending his tumultuous coaching tenure in Detroit. But the firing didn’t happen in vaccum, it was truly a culmination of on-field performance issues, Lions’ perceived unmet expectations, and cultural criticisms. Upon looking back, Patricia’s move to the Lions was bound to fail all along.

Patricia came in as a Patriots thoroughbred. He served under Belichick since 2004 and oversaw the golden generation of the Patriots’ dynasty. But Detroit was no Patriots, and Patricia’s attempt to adopt a Belichick-esque blueprint backfired massively. In just the first game, the Jets blew the Lions out 48-17, and the team won back-to-back games only once in the 2018 season.

Call it a systematic failure or Detroit’s own historic woefulness of not winning for 26 years, but things never worked for Patricia. In the end, he compiled a 13-29-1 record. But then the ownership changed, and so did the goals. When Sheila Ford Hamp came in, there was a deep urgency to get Detroit back on top. And so, second chances are not what he got.

“It just clearly wasn’t working. Wasn’t what we had hoped for when we hired them, and so I don’t know if there was an exact moment,” Sheila Ford said after Patricia’s firing. “It was something that we had been thinking about for several weeks and going back and forth and deciding.”

However, Patricia didn’t let this demotivate him. The 51-year-old, without any ego or inhibitions, went back to the Patriots as their senior football advisor for 2 years and then got a job as the Eagles’ defensive assistant in 2023. Finally, he landed as Ohio State’s defensive coordinator in 2025 and led one of the best defenses in the country in just his first year. All of it, in Patricia’s words, happened due to his reluctance to take a “prolonged break,” which he termed “was out of his wheelhouse.” Thereupon, coming to Ohio State, the New York native had truly learned from his failed Detroit stint and came with a new approach.

Patricia learned the hard way, but changed his approach for Ohio State

During Patricia’s tenure at the Detroit Lions, public perception grew about the head coach struggling to connect with his players. Critics described Patricia’s approach as distant or awkward, suggesting that he didn’t communicate effectively with his players. Moreover, the controversial trades of Darius Slay and Quandre Diggs, who were productive at the Lions, only made the claims louder. But that is in the past tense; he has mended his ways, and now he is more Patricia, less Belichick in his approach.

Upon his arrival in Columbus, the New Yorker leaned on his veteran players to guide him. The 51-year-old didn’t mind listening to what a player wanted and adjusting things accordingly to fit everyone. “Caleb is as steady as they go,” Patricia said. “And Sonny is, too. When you have leadership like that, it’s great as a coach.

You try to tell them, but it’s always great for them to see it, and you can just be like, ‘Hey, no, just point to that. That’s the example. Follow their lead,” Patricia added. The minor tweaks and adjustments helped the DC finally make Columbus his new home and be loved by Ohio State fans. It’s understandable, too, since his 2025 performance speaks for itself.

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The team ranks 1st nationally in total defense, and Patricia shut down a preseason favorite, Texas, and Arch Manning in his first game. The rushing defense was no less prolific and was 7th-ranked in the country, giving away just 89.36 yards per game. Red-zone defense was an added plus as Patricia used OSU’s old culture and went with a 4-2-5 base. Although he didn’t mind shifting it when required to a 3 front setup. Right now, everything is working for Patricia, and he is loving Ohio State and the reception he has got.

“I love the fact that Buckeye Nation loves this team so much,” the OSU DC said. “I’m really gonna sacrifice everything I can to make sure I come through for you. I’m gonna give you everything I got,” Patricia added about his plans in Columbus. Matt Patricia’s career trajectory will most likely go upwards from this point, and we will surely see him on the sidelines in Columbus for years to come. Hopefully!!