Patriots offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels spurns Colts’ head coaching job he’d already taken after Patriots sweeten his contract

David Zalubowski/AP

• Josh McDaniels spurned the Indianapolis Colts’ head coaching job to stay with the New England Patriots, according to a report.
• McDaniels had agreed to terms with the Colts, and the team had announced the agreement, but he had reportedly not signed a contract.
• Patriots owner Robert Kraft reportedly convinced McDaniels to stay by “sweetening” his deal.

Josh McDaniels reneged on an agreement with the Indianapolis Colts to remain the offensive coordinator with the New England Patriots in a shocking move, according to ESPN’s Adam Schefter.

McDaniels had agreed to become the Colts head coach, but Patriots owner Robert Kraft reportedly got involved in talks the last two days, eventually “sweetening” McDaniels’ offer to keep him in New England.

The decision comes after the Colts had already announced McDaniels’ hiring, even tweeting links to a story about McDaniels’ background and announcing the live-streaming of his introductory press conference.

According to Schefter, McDaniels had already been reconsidering the agreement and had not signed a contract with the Colts yet.

On Sunday, before the Patriots’ Super Bowl loss to the Philadelphia Eagles, there were rumors about McDaniels staying in New England. Pro Football Talk’s Mike Florio had tweeted that there were rumors of Belichick retiring and McDaniels staying to take his job. He later reported there was “increasing chatter” that McDaniels may not leave, regardless of Belichick’s future.

According to Schefter, McDaniels would still like to become a head coach again, but the more he thought about taking the Colts’ job, the less it appealed to him.

The Colts released a statement saying they were “surprised and disappointed” by McDaniels’ decision, but would continue on with their search.

McDaniels’ decision to stay could lessen what looked like a potentially turbulent offseason for the Patriots, and it leaves the Colts scrambling for a new coach.