Lions DE suggests players are very happy Patricia is with Patriots originally appeared on NBC Sports Boston
A current member of the Detroit Lions who didn’t even overlap with the Matt Patricia era in the Motor City seems to be pleased his arrival coincided with a new regime.
Michael Brockers, who was traded to the Lions from the Los Angeles Rams in March — nearly four months after Patricia had been fired from his job as head coach — appeared on the Jim Rome Show earlier this week and discussed what he’s heard from holdovers regarding Patricia.
“There’s a lot of guys coming from that ex-Patricia era and they’re like ‘Man, this coaching staff understands,'” Brockers told Rome of playing for new coach Dan Campbell. “‘This coaching staff talks to you, they communicate with you.’ And you see a lot of guys loving that and buying in.”
“When you have that, I’ve seen that turnaround from 4-12 and then going to the playoffs the following year. Man, I just think we’re off on the right foot. It’s definitely going to be exciting to move forward with this team.”
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Brockers, a defensive lineman entering his first season in Detroit following nine seasons with the Rams, told Rome that the way you communicate is vital.
“A lot of players in this league, we’re not about the BS,” Brockers said. “Just tell us what we’ve got to do, explain it to us in terms that we understand, though, and let’s get the job done.”
For his part, Patricia has seemingly landed landed back on his feet in New England as a jack-of-all-trades. But his tenure with the Lions truly was disastrous, with the team amassing a 13-29-1 record over parts of three seasons prior to his dismissal.
Detroit finished in last place in the NFC North from 2018-20 following back-to-back second-place finishes under Patricia’s predecessor, Jim Caldwell.