Former New England Patriots offensive play-caller and offensive line coach Matt Patricia is apparently joining the Philadelphia Eagles staff.

During a pre-draft press conference Thursday, Eagles Coach Nick Sirianni said he is trending toward hiring Patricia for a role on his staff. Minutes later, ESPN reported that Patricia and the Eagles have officially reached terms to make him a senior defensive assistant.

“Obviously, (Patricia’s) resume speaks for itself,” Sirianni said. “He gives you a great mind in there that’s done it at the highest level; gives me another former head coach I can bounce ideas off.”

According to sources, Patricia has not been an active member of the Patriots organization since the team’s offseason began in mid-January.

Patricia flipped to the offensive coaching staff last year after spending most of his coaching career on defense. Under his leadership as de facto offensive coordinator, the Patriots’ offense averaged 18.1 points per game over its worst season-long performance of the Bill Belichick era. The team finished 8-9, and second-year quarterback Mac Jones regressed statistically.

Shortly after the season ended, Belichick hired Bill O’Brien to replace Patricia and Joe Judge as the offensive play-caller and quarterbacks coach. Last spring, Belichick elevated Patricia into his first-time roles of offensive play-caller and offensive line coach after Patricia worked as a senior football advisor in 2021. Prior to landing back with the Patriots, he was the head coach of the Detroit Lions for two and half seasons until he was fired midway through the 2020 season.

Patricia first made a name for himself as the Patriots’ defensive coordinator from 2012-17, a position he took after working as an offensive assistant, linebackers coach and safeties coach in New England.

DRAFT: NFL prospect Michael Jefferson, a former Louisiana-Lafayette wide receiver,  has been released from the hospital after his involvement in a car accident earlier this month in which a 55-year-old was killed.

In a statement to The Associated Press, Jefferson’s attorney, Brad Sohn, said the NFL hopeful “would not have made it this far without being a fighter and remains in good spirits under the circumstances.”

“He still has optimism that – even as he continues to undergo grueling rehabilitation – he can have an outstanding NFL career,” Sohn’s statement said. “We believe that optimism is well-founded and hope a team will still select this terrific young man and great football player.”

At about 7:55 p.m. on April 9, a car driven by Charles A. Dunn collided head-on with a 2014 Dodge Charger driven by Jefferson, 23. Another vehicle then struck Dunn’s car. Dunn was pronounced dead at the scene.

Sohn said that “a drunk driver tragically hit my client.”

Asked if there was any evidence that Dunn was impaired at the time, a spokesperson with the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency said the agency had no further comment on the crash.

Jefferson played the last two seasons at Louisiana-Lafayette after transferring from Alabama State. He finished with his best season, catching 51 passes for 810 yards and seven touchdowns.

Jefferson has been projected as a potential late-round pick in the draft starting April 27.

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