The Patriots are retaining cornerbacks coach Mike Pellegrino for the 2024 season, according to ESPN.

Pellegrino is expected to continue coaching cornerbacks under new head coach Jerod Mayo. The 30-year-old has served in that position since 2019, and worked on the Patriots’ staff for nine years. He joined the organization as a coaching assistant and has presided over a consistently strong cornerback group in New England.

Last season, first-round rookie Christian Gonzalez started the first four games of his career before suffering a season-ending shoulder injury. Pellegrino also coached J.C. Jackson to a Pro Bowl, and 2022 fourth-rounder Jack Jones nabbed two interceptions as a rookie. In his first season as cornerbacks coach, Stephon Gilmore was named the NFL’s Defensive Player of the Year, while acting as a cornerstone for the league’s top-ranked defnse.

Pellegrino’s reported return all but completes the team’s defensive staff. Safeties coach Brian Belichick will return for the 2024 season, a source confirmed, while the Patriots recently hired ex-Packers defensive line coach Jerry Montgomery to the same position. Montgomery replaces DeMarcus Covington, who was officially promoted last week to defensive coordinator..

The Patriots’ only remaining vacancies among their defensive position coaches are at linebacker. In recent seasons, the team split those duties between Mayo and former defensive play-caller Steve Belichick, who coached the inside and outside linebackers, respectively.