Bret Bielema Telling People Going To Be Patriots’ New Defensive Coordinator

Ben Volin of the Boston Globe, citing a league source, reports that Bret Bielema has been telling people that he’s going to be the Patriots next defensive coordinator.

Last week, one report mentioned that Greg Schiano was expected to take a top defensive coaching position with the Patriots, but Volin isn’t 100 percent certain that he’ll end up as the team’s next defensive coordinator.

Volin adds that it would be a rare move for Bill Belichick to make an outside hire and then elevate him so soon to coordinator.

Bielema actually came up as a potential candidate to follow Brian Flores to the Dolphins as his defensive coordinator, but the plan is instead for him to hire Patrick Graham.

Bielema, 49, began his coaching career at Iowa as a graduate assistant back in 1994. He worked his way up to LBs coach before departing for a job at Kansas State.

Wisconsin later hired Bielema as their defensive coordinator in 2004 and promoted him to head coach two years later. He spent seven years as the team’s head coach before departing for the head-coaching job at Arkansas.

Unfortunately, Arkansas fired Bielema after five years and he agreed to join the Patriots last year as a consultant.

During his coaching career at Wisconsin and Arkansas, Bielema posted a record of 97-58 (62.5 percent) and 10 bowl appearances.

We’ll have more regarding the Patriots as the news is available.