It looks as if Bill O’Brien’s time with Crimson Tide may be at an end. The veteran offensive coordinator could possibly be returning to the NFL and his former team, the New England Patriots.

According to NBC’s Tom Curran, the likelihood of O’Brien leaving Tuscaloosa for Foxboro is very high, possibly even assured.

“Obviously the speculation continues to be that Bill O’Brien will be brought in,” Curran said. “Folks who are knowledgeable in this, that I reached out to in the last couple of days who would have insight, I said, ‘Would Bill (Belichick) want Bill O’Brien?’ Because that question has really not been asked. There’s a perception that, ‘Hey, it’s a done deal. Of course Bill would want him back.’ But I asked, and the individual said, ‘Absolutely.’”

According to Curran, that same individual went even further stating, “I’m surprised if it’s not in the works or a done deal already.”

In O’Brien’s lone season as head of the offense in New England, the Patriots led the league in scoring and were second in yards. O’Brien spent four years with the Patriots, eventually working his way up to be in charge of New England’s offense in 2011.

After leaving the Patriots organization in 2011, O’Brien was head coach for Penn State from 2012-13. He received the 2012 Paul “Bear” Bryant College Coach of the Year Award. He returned to the NFL in 2014 where he was the head coach of the Houston Texans until his firing during four games into 2020 season. In 2021, he was named offensive coordinator for Alabama.

The Tide will play their final game of the season Saturday against Kansas State in the Sugar Bowl.

Austen Shipley is a staff writer for Yellowhammer News.