The Patriots’ Youngest Position Coach Earned Bill Belichick Trust

New England Patriots Bill Belichick has worked with many assistants and players in his career and just a handful of people have earned his trust. Ross Douglas is definitely one of them.

Douglas is the youngest position coach in New England, but Belichick appreciates every bit of his talent. It’s interesting to note that Douglas is just 27. Many older and more experienced coaches were unable to build a good connection with the legendary head coach.

"You can just tell he's an up-and-coming star in the business."

Meet #Patriots assistant Ross Douglas, the youngest position coach in the NFL who's gained Bill Belichick's complete trust at age 27https://t.co/eHCyrgHkUn pic.twitter.com/qrLOVn6FGL

— Andrew Callahan (@_AndrewCallahan) May 25, 2022

Bill Belichick decided to trust Douglas for a good reason

Douglas is special in so many ways. He played football at Michigan University and then coached under Greg Schiano. We all know that Belichick and Schiano are close friends. The Patriots head coach even wanted Schiano to be the Patriots defensive coordinator. Douglas knows Steve and Brian Belichick really well. In his first season with the Patriots, Douglas was breaking down the film and helped the Patriots scout team prepare for the next game. Douglas was a coaching assistant for long enough and he sure caught Belichick’s attention. Of course, the Patriots have yet to confirm his title.

NFL coaches have high opinion of Douglas.

 “You can just tell he’s an up-and-coming star in the business,” says Richmond coach Russ Huesman.

“I don’t think he’s going places,” added Schiano, “he’s already gone places.”

What else could you ask for?

Douglas faces a huge challenge in New England. He couldn’t make a career as a player, but he can definitely do something as a position coach.

“I didn’t want to keep chasing the dream because I realized I wasn’t an NFL player,” Douglas told reporters last week.

Schiano praised Douglas’ desire to learn new things. The 27-year-old asks a lot of question and this is his own way of building a style. Belichick has been looking for someone like him for a really long time.

“The thing that impressed me was him always thirsting to learn how to do this or do that. He asked a lot of questions,” Schiano said. “You could see he was trying to formulate his own style, and I think he picked up some really good things.”