McDaniels was born and raised in the Ron Erhardt-Ray Perkins system, which was passed on to Charlie Weis. Following Weis’ departure, McDaniels and Tom Brady took the baton from there, and took it to another level, with the degree of difficulty expanding.

There was a familiar face back in the Patriots’ media workroom Thursday. Josh McDaniels was looking thinner, and he’s got more grey hairs on his head, but the offensive coordinator — returning for his third stint with the Patriots — seemed recharged in his first meeting with reporters since being hired by head coach Mike Vrabel in January.

Josh McDaniels hasn't coached Drake Maye on the football field yet, but the Patriots offensive coordinator already feels like most of New England when it comes to the young quarterback.