The Patriots announced they completed interviews with Byron Leftwich and Pep Hamilton on Tuesday.
That makes them the first team to comply with the Rooney Rule, which requires teams to conduct in-person interviews with at least two minority candidates.
Leftwich, 44, was the Buccaneers offensive coordinator under head coaches Bruce Arians and Todd Bowles from 2019-22. The Bucs, with Tom Brady at quarterback, won Super Bowl LV to cap the 2020 season.
While the team ranked No. 3, No. 3, and No. 2 in scoring from 2019-21 — with Jameis Winston as quarterback in 2019 before Tom Brady arrived in 2020 — the Bucs slipped to 15th in yards and 25th in points in 2022. Bowles fired Leftwich after that season.
He has not coached the past two seasons.
Hamilton, 50, served as the Texans’ offensive coordinator in 2022, his most recent season coaching in the NFL. He was the Texans’ passing game coordinator and their quarterbacks coach in 2021, and he served as the Chargers’ quarterbacks coach in 2020.
Hamilton also was the XFL’s DC Defenders head coach in 2020.
