Notes: Matt Patricia ‘heavily involved’ with Patriots’ pre-draft process

Ever had a bad breakup, then stumbled upon news about what your ex has been up to?

You certainly weren’t seeking it out. You’re still trying to heal, you’ve moved on to someone new and better for you. And yet, there it is.

In a Zoom call with reporters Thursday, New England Patriots coach Bill Belichick mentioned how, obviously, the draft process has been different amid the COVID-19 pandemic. He explained how they’ve been able to mitigate the changes and highlighted his staff, mentioning former Detroit Lions head coach Matt Patricia first.

“The draft process has been a little bit different this year than it was last year. This year, we didn’t have the Indianapolis combine. But we did have some opportunities on pro days so that made it a little bit diff but in the end we accumulated a lot of information. Matt has rejoined us and has been heavily involved in the process. Dave Ziegler, Eliot Wolf, and Matt Groh have really carried the ball on this, and their respective staffs that they oversee as well.”

It’s still not clear what Patricia’s role is with the Patriots. He left his position as defensive coordinator to become the Lions head coach in 2018, where he would go 13-29-1, and was fired in late November 2020, not that you needed the reminder.

A few months later, Patricia returned to Foxborough. According to the Boston Globe, his new position would be to “assist the Patriots coaching staff in a variety of roles.” He’s also apparently been involved in free agent signings and contract negotiations, per ESPN.

So returning to today’s presser, Belichick mentioned Patricia among national scout Matt Groh, front office consultant Eliot Wolf, and assistant director of player personnel Dave Ziegler. All three just got back from Ohio State quarterback Justin Fields’ second pro day.

Now, whether that means anything about what Patricia is doing in New England, who’s to say. But those are some key names in the Patriots organization.

And onto the rest of your notes.

• The NFL released more details on what opening night of the 2021 NFL Draft will look like, including a performance from Kings of Leon.

• From detroitlions.com, Tim Twentyman continues his meet the prospect series with a fan favorite — Mr. Kyle Pitts.

• Perhaps some early chemistry building?

• Aaron Rodgers has alluded that his time in Green Bay may be coming to an end. Just when that might be, who’s to say, but Dave Birkett explains how the Lions can take advantage of his situation. (Subscription required.)

• We learned yesterday the NFL reached a milestone in administering 2 million doses at league facilities, including Ford Field. Here’s a short look at what some of the other operations looked like across the country:

• Has nothing to do with the Lions, I honestly just couldn’t resist throwing this in here when I came across the story on NFL.com. Some internet “scouts” and “data analysts” have a NEW, sexy quarterback metric - neck size.

Mr. Humphries then proceeds to rank draft prospects by neck size, so use that if you’d like when creating your personal mocks. I love the interwebs.