Chad Johnson ‘Can’t Wait’ To See Patriots Under Bill O’Brien

It’s a tad too early to draw conclusions from Bill O’Brien’s second stint as New England Patriots offensive coordinator, but it’s fair to say people are excited for what’s in store.

The Patriots rangled together just 20 points in their season-opening loss to the Philadelphia Eagles, but saw marked improvement by the offense throughout the contest. Mac Jones surpassed the 300-yard mark for just the fifth time in his career, while Kendrick Bourne exploded back onto the scene with a pair of touchdown receptions after spending the majority of 2022-23 in Matt Patricia’s doghouse.

That has folks eager to see how they’ll look in a Week 2 contest against the Miami Dolphins — including a former Patriots wideout who played his lone season in New England under O’Brien.

“I can’t (expletive) wait to see Bill. Bill was really cool, really cool,” Chad Johnson said Sunday in an interview with Alex Barth of 98.5 The Sports Hub. “I (expletive) love him. (He) cursed a lot, now that was right up my alley. He cursed a lot and that was right up my alley as far as coaching is concerned. Coach Bill is one of those coaches that reminded me of my Little League coaches in Miami and the way they coach. They coach hard and and they respected more out of you. And that was, that was dope.”

Johnson is uniquely qualified to speak on the situation Patriots wideouts are in, as he was a newcomer to O’Brien’s system in 2011, like they all are now. JuJu Smith-Schuster is perhaps the best one-for-one example in the group, as he’s a veteran joining New England for the first time, all while trying to learn O’Brien’s system.

“Bill was really cool, really cool. I (expletive) love him.”

Chad Johnson on Patriots offensive coordinator Bill O’Brien

“I’m not sure where he is,” Johnson said. “I don’t really know what’s going on that much as far as this organization is concerned because I’m on the outside looking in. But I know it’s difficult. Just as someone that got here late when the trade happened. Like, there’s so much time that I missed that I really needed to build that chemistry and get that rapport with Brady. But I didn’t have that.”

Smith-Schuster is off to a slow start, and maybe that has something to do with the new system, but it also could have a lot to do with a reported knee injury he’s been dealing with. Either way, the Patriots are hoping his season turns out better than Johnson’s did.