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“Whoever these reporters are that make these ridiculous statements, maybe you want to talk to me about it first before you put some information out there that has actually zero basis.”
The Patriots‘ offseason rumor mill is already working around the clock, but one former member of New England’s front office has emphatically denied a report of a possible return.
Nick Caserio, the Patriots’ longtime director of player personnel, has been Texans general manager since 2021. In that time, he’s made significant strides in rebuilding Houston into what has become a surprising playoff team this season.
Yet with New England potentially pursuing a new direction following a 4-13 season, Caserio’s name inevitably came up. A recent report from The Washington Post’s Jason La Canfora claimed that he’s continued to “hear that [Caserio] would be open to a return to New England if such an arrangement could be worked out.”
On Tuesday, Caserio completely dismissed the report during an interview with SportsRadio 610’s “Payne & Pendergast.”
“Yeah I’m going to try to hold my tongue here a little bit but I would just say: This time of year there are a lot of things that are said, and anybody that makes a jackass statement — that they either know me or ‘trust me, you can rely on this information,’ — honestly is totally off-base,” Caserio explained.
“I would say I am grateful for the opportunity that I have here. Respectfully, I know there are a lot of reporters out there that think they have information, but this becomes silly season,” he added. “It happens every year, whether its during the January-February cycle when you have coaching changes, [or] whether it’s around the draft.”
Caserio inherited what was described as a “train wreck” with the Texans, but has attempted to rebuild the team’s roster. In 2023, Houston picked quarterback C.J. Stroud second overall in the draft. Stroud, despite pre-draft uncertainty, flourished in his first NFL season (passing for over 4,000 yards and throwing 23 touchdown passes).
Speaking about his work habits, Caserio said he doesn’t usually even pay attention to media reports.
“I keep to myself. I try to just show up, try do my job, try to support the people that I’m with on a day to day basis, and just focus on the things I control,” he noted, “and not worry about some off-handed statements that are made out of left field that quite frankly have zero validity.”
Capping off a forceful denial of the rumors, Caserio implored media members to doublecheck reports more carefully in the future.
“Whoever these reporters are that make these ridiculous statements, maybe you want to talk to me about it first before you put some information out there that has actually zero basis.”