Booker will rejoin Mike Vrabel in New England.
As part of their process to overhaul their coaching staff, the New England Patriots will also have some new assistants running the cornerback and safety rooms. While it remains to be seen who will hold which role and title in the secondary, it is no stretch of the imagination that Scott Booker will be part of the mix.
On Wednesday, it was reported that Booker would join the Patriots in an undisclosed role. He worked as nickelbacks coach and senior defensive assistant for the Buffalo Bills in 2024, and before that served as an assistant coach for the Tennessee Titans.
What does his addition mean for the Patriots, though? Let’s try to find out.
Experience in the secondary
A four-year letterwinner as a defensive back at Kent State, Booker went into coaching shortly after his 2003 graduation. He started out as a graduate assistant and defensive backs coach at his alma mater before stints at Western Kentucky, Notre Dame and Nebraska. In 2018, he made the jump to the NFL as a member of the Titans.
Over the course of his 22-year coaching career, Booker worked several jobs. While he mostly focused on defense, and the secondary in particular, he also has seen time as a special teams and tight ends coach.
The expectation is that he will work on defense in New England, though, and as such bring some much-needed experience to the mix. Before Booker coming on board, the only coach believed to be working with the secondary was former Illinois assistant defensive backs coach Kevin Richardson. Now, Richardson gets a veteran companion.
Potential Brian Belichick replacement
The Patriots will be replacing both their cornerbacks and safeties coaches in 2025, opting not to retain Mike Pellegrino and Brian Belichick in the respective roles. While Booker has worked with entire secondaries before, it would not come as a surprise if he ultimately took over Belichick’s former job.
His stint in Tennessee under Mike Vrabel, after all, saw him coach safeties for four years. His one-year tenure with the Bills also suggests he might be better suited for that job rather than replacing Pellegrino.
Free agency factor?
When it comes to NFL free agency, money is the deciding factor. However, all things being equal, surroundings also play a role — and adding a seasoned coach like Booker to the mix works in New England’s favor in that regard, especially with Pellegrino and Belichick exiting the organization.
Some names to consider in that regard are the Patriots’ in-house unrestricted free agents, cornerback Jonathan Jones and Jaylinn Hawkins, as well as Bills DBs Damar Hamlin and Rasul Douglas.
Familiarity with Mike Vrabel
Booker becomes the latest Patriots coaching hire with an extensive history of collaborating with Mike Vrabel. The veteran defensive backs coach and the new head coach were part of Vrabel’s staff with the Titans for six years; Booker started out as a defensive assistant and later coached Tennessee’s safeties under his old and new HC.
In total, he is the seventh incoming assistant coach with ties to Vrabel. If you add offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels, who were part of the Patriots’ staff while Vrabel was still a player, that number jumps to eight out of 14 reported hires so far.
Defensive staff taking shape
Outside of coordinator Terrell Williams — another long-time Vrabel assistant — the Patriots have not yet confirmed any of their defensive staff. Looking at the list of hires so far, however, we can see that the group on that side of the ball is taking shape.
The expectation is that Booker and the aforementioned Kevin Richardson will be involved with the secondary. Clinton McMillan is a candidate to work with the defensive line, while Zak Kuhr and Milton Patterson have experience coaching linebackers.