Regarded as one of the finest offensive coordinators of all time, Josh McDaniels got his due for 2025 on Thursday night.
McDaniels, the architect of the New England Patriots’ Super Bowl offense, was named the 2025 AP NFL Assistant Coach of the Year prior to Thursday night’s NFL Honors at the Palace of Fine Arts in San Francisco.
McDaniels received 17 of 50 first-place votes to finish with 249 points, while Broncos defensive coordinator Vance Joseph came in second with 10 first-place votes and 176 points. The other finalists were Vikings DC Brian Flores (third place; 130 votes), Seahawks OC Klint Kubiak (fourth; 102) and Eagles DC Vic Fangio (fifth; 78).
In his third-career stint as the Patriots’ offensive coordinator, McDaniels engineered an offense that improved from 30th in points per game last season (17.0 points per game) to second this year (28.8 PPG). Just 31st in yards in 2024 (292.0 yards per game), the 2025 Patriots were third (379.4 YPG) upon McDaniels’ return.
Not to be overlooked is how much of an impact McDaniels has played in the second-year rise of quarterback Drake Maye, who was a finalist for AP NFL Offensive Player of the Year and AP NFL MVP.
A winner of six Super Bowls with the Patriots, McDaniels has hauled in his first Assistant Coach of the Year accolade, which is also a first for the organization dating back to the award’s inception in 2014.