Greg Schiano’s decision to resign remaining a bit murky in New England. Patriots coach Bill Belichick has provided no clarity on the situation aside from a brief statement, in which Belichick expressed his respect for Schiano’s decision to leave the team after a few months as the team’s defensive coordinator.
During a pre-draft press conference on Wednesday at Gillette Stadium, Belichick steered the conversation away from Schiano.
“We’ll just kind of stick to the draft right. But I appreciate the question. I really appreciate you asking,” Belichick said with a smirk that further indicated his heavy sarcasm.
Does losing a defensive coordinator change how the team scouts?
“We’re not talking about an unprecedented event here,” Belichick said. “Yeah, we’ve dealt with changes. We’ll continue to deal with them.”
These were two of the tersest answers in a press conference, which featured long and in-depth answer along with an opening statement that lasted almost seven minutes.
New England has cruised through defensive coordinators over the last few years with Matt Patricia leaving after the 2017 season and de-facto defensive coordinator Flores leaving after 2018.
Schiano was never officially named defensive coordinator — his resignation came first. New England hasn’t named a defensive coordinator, and may not. They went without a defensive coordinator for more than once season under Belichick’s tenure, including the 2018 season.
Flores joined the Miami Dolphins as coach, and he brought a handful of assistants with him. That has left the Patriots with just Steve Belichick, a safeties coach, as the team’s only defensive coach on staff.
