If you’re a Detroit Lions fan, chances are you remember the Matt Patricia era. It wasn’t that long ago. Plus, it was a really, really bad era in Lions football, so it stands out. Yes, I realize that all eras of Lions football are usually bad – this current one the exception – but things were particularly dismal under Patricia.

Patricia came onto the Lions’ staff as head coach following a fairly successful few years under the fatherly coaching of Jim Caldwell. The latter served as head coach of the Detroit Lions from 2014 2017. He even led the Lions to 9 wins in 2017, a good record for a usually losing franchise, but politics took over and Matt Patricia was soon announced to be the new Lions head coach.

Patricia was with the Lions from 2018 to 2020. His record with the team was dismal. Patricia finished his time in Detroit with a 13–29–1 (.314) record in two and a half seasons. What’s worse than the poor record was all the buzz from inside the Lions’ camp that Patricia brought a negative, totalitarian atmosphere to the team.

In November of 2020, Patricia and general manager Bob Quinn were both fired by the Lions. It’s not hyperbole to say that Lions fans were PUMPED. Then, Dan Campbell was announced as the succeeding coach. We all love Dan, duh.

Now, Patricia is back with the team he was with before the Lions, the New England Patriots. He’s their senior football advisor and offensive line coach. And the team is not doing well. It’s embarrassing, actually. Sure, Bill Belichick is too legendary to have this season take away his place as one of the greatest coaches in NFL history, but nobody is happy about the Patriots’ 7-7 record, because this team usually delivers so much more.

Patricia is getting the brunt of the blame. In a new chat on ESPN’s “Monday Night Countdown,” Hall of Fame quarterback Steve Young bashed Belichick’s decision to put Matt Patricia, a defensive coach, in charge of offensive play-calling this season.

“It’s complete hubris to say that that doesn’t matter, expertise doesn’t matter,” Young said. “If I’m Matt Patricia, I want to stay in my lane. I’m a great defensive coach. The idea that it doesn’t matter, you can just come wherever you want and just coach, is just not true. And it belies what’s happening in the league today, especially at quarterback.”

Former NFL GM Michael Lombardi has also blasted Belichick for putting Patricia in charge of the offense.

“There’s going to have to be a really hard self-evaluation, and it’s going to have to start with the head coach because they can’t throw the ball,” Lombardi said via MassLive.com. “Let’s just put it out there — they can’t throw the football. This whole Matt Patricia-Joe Judge, it’s not working. We’re in Week 16. You want to say ‘Mac Jones sucks,’ but you watched him last year with Josh McDaniels. He didn’t suck. So, you decide.”

Lions fans are happy that this is someone else’s problem for once. More blue Kool-Aid, please!