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Bob DeChiara-USA TODAY Sports

Duron Harmon Reveals the Patriots Lessons Powering His Coaching Future—Exclusive

Originally posted on Athlon Sports | By Jake Elman | Last updated Sep 3, 2025 8:45 AM ET

Early in his rookie season, defensive back Duron Harmon looked around the New England Patriots' defensive huddle and loved what he saw.

Harmon, a 2013 third-round pick from Rutgers, immediately joined what can only be described as a loaded Patriots defense. New England still had All-Pro defensive tackle Vince Wilfork, and veteran cornerback Aqib Talib was on the brink of breaking out. Future Patriots coach Jerod Mayo manned the middle linebacker spot, and young pass-rusher Chandler Jones impressed with six sacks as a rookie.

“I just remember I wasn’t nervous or anything,” Harmon reflected in an interview with Athlon. “I was making the calls. I was confident. And I was like, ‘Yeah, like, you belong here.’”

Harmon, who announced his retirement on Wednesday, now gets to watch young players watch their own hard work pay off. The three-time Super Bowl champion is fully transitioning to operating and coaching Harm Elite, a 7-on-7 youth football team he founded in 2017.

Not only does the next generation of football players get to learn from Harmon, but they're soaking in knowledge that he absorbed from the likes of Bill Belichick, Brian Flores, and Matt Patricia.

Duron Harmon Explains What He Learned From Bill Belichick and Patriots Coaches

Belichick's resume speaks for itself, even if the UNC Tar Heels' embarrassing 48-14 Week 1 loss to TCU lingers on football fans' minds. New England won six Super Bowls and nine AFC championships in Belichick's two decades leading the Patriots.

"If you want to play for Coach Belichick, you got to be dependable and you got to be tough," Harmon explained. "You got to be able to go out there, and he has to know that you know what to do."

Not to be outdone, Flores and Patricia are accomplished defensive minds in their own right. Flores earned widespread acclaim coaching the Patriots' safeties and linebackers from 2012-18 before taking the Miami Dolphins' head coaching job.

Harmon described Flores as "fiery" and praised the Minnesota Vikings' defensive coordinator's ability to properly prepare players.

"He's a great teacher from the standpoint of understanding what the safety was supposed to look for," Harmon explained.

Then, there's Patricia, who spent 2012-17 as the Patriots' defensive coordinator. Now at Ohio State, Patricia's Buckeyes defense repeatedly flustered Texas quarterback Arch Manning and allowed the No. 1-ranked Longhorns to convert only six of their 19 third- and fourth-down tries.

“I mean, he’s just a mad scientist,” Harmon said of Patricia. “Just completely different.

“The thing that he does extremely well is just, you know, tendencies,” Harmon continued. “Knowing what the offense is going to do, how to attack them, how to break them down, how to make them play left-handed. What will help us win the game [and] taking away their best assets.”

If you had to pick three coaches to learn from, especially if you're a high school player hoping to one day reach the NFL, then it's hard to do better than Duron Harmon’s trio.

This article first appeared on Athlon Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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