FOXBORO, Mass. — Way back to July, when Jerod Mayo arrived on the observe fields out behind Gillette Stadium for his first coaching camp as coach of the New England Patriots, many prognosticators noticed a workforce that was at the start line of a big-time rebuild. That the Patriots completed the season with a dismal 4-13 file shouldn’t be checked out as a giant shock.
Why, then, is Mayo out as coach after only one season? We will cherry-pick this or that teaching choice or non-decision, nevertheless it wasn’t simply what occurred on the sphere that prompt a not-ready-for-prime-time unsteadiness about Mayo. It was additionally what occurred on the file. Virtually from the start, Mayo’s numerous media appearances, from information conferences to his weekly morning-drive interview on WEEI’s “The Greg Hill Present,” ranged from contradictory and uncomfortable to 1 unlucky occasion that had a whiff of old style buck-passing.
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Nobody utterance from Mayo led to Patriots followers clamoring for a training change. He’s, in spite of everything, a former Patriots linebacker who in his eight seasons in Foxboro was teammates with the likes of Tom Brady, Wes Welker, Randy Moss. Vince Wilfork, Tedy Bruschi, Rob Ninkovich and Devin McCourty. He additionally performed with Mike Vrabel, the person who might quickly be wooed to be Mayo’s substitute.
It’s secure to say Pats followers have been rooting for Mayo. However because the verbal missteps continued, it turned ever extra apparent Mayo lacked the correct quantity of coaching to be a head coach within the NFL.
Assertion from Patriots Chairman and CEO Robert Kraft: https://t.co/2YgHtzzBHK pic.twitter.com/GMXGgd768x
— New England Patriots (@Patriots) January 5, 2025
Mayo struck the precise notes when he was launched because the substitute for the legendary Invoice Belichick, as when he stated, “For me, I’m not making an attempt to be Invoice,” and, “The extra I take into consideration the teachings that I’ve taken from Invoice, exhausting work works.” He did increase some eyebrows when on a number of events he referred to Patriots proprietor Robert Kraft as “Younger Thundercat” and “Thunder.” Mayo later defined he got here up with the nicknames as a result of he felt Kraft, who turned 83 in June, has a “younger soul.”
No hurt, no foul on that one. However in a while, because the losses piled up and Mayo’s public statements turned extra closely scrutinized, “Younger Thundercat” and “Thunder” have been re-examined from critics who believed Mayo had landed the teaching gig as a result of he’d change into particularly chummy with Kraft through the years. Kraft himself has stated he was impressed to view Mayo as a future NFL head coach through the time they spent collectively on a visit to Israel in 2019.
Nevertheless it was after the introductory information convention, and after Mayo moved into the redecorated coach’s workplace at Gillette Stadium, that the media missteps started to pile up.
A sampling:
‘Able to burn some money’
Showing on WEEI on Jan 22, just a little greater than per week after being named coach, Mayo indicated the Patriots wouldn’t be limiting their roster constructing to the NFL Draft. “We’re bringing in expertise, one thousand %,” he stated. “Have plenty of cap house and money. Able to burn some money.”
The Patriots had someplace north of $60 million in cap house, however the brand new coach was quickly strolling again that remark. “You recognize, I sort of misspoke after I stated ‘burn some money,’ however I used to be excited once you see these numbers,” Mayo advised Karen Guregian of MassLive. “However once you replicate on these numbers … you don’t need to spend all of it in a single yr.”
One week into free company, with a lot of the prime names off the board, “the Patriots roster doesn’t look or really feel an entire lot completely different from the one which went 4-13 final season,” The Athletic’s Chad Graff wrote. They did usher in journeyman quarterback Jacoby Brissett on a one-year deal for about $8 million.
The blended messaging at quarterback
Virtually from the second the Patriots chosen quarterback Drake Maye with the third choose within the draft, Mayo stated there could be a “competitors” for the job between the rookie (Maye) and the veteran (Brissett). Nothing uncommon there, as this can be a default quote from coaches after a shiny new draft choose has had his introductory hug with NFL commissioner Roger Goodell and been launched to the media.
However issues acquired difficult when Mayo made repeated references to Maye outperforming Brissett within the preseason, resembling when the brand new coach went on WEEI and stated, “This was, or is, a real competitors. It wasn’t fluff or something like that. It’s a real competitors. And I might say at this present level, you realize, Drake has outplayed Jacoby.”
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Which brings us to an Aug. 28 Mayo media availability that lasted only a few seconds north of a minute.
“We have now determined — or I’ve determined — that Jacoby Brissett will probably be our beginning quarterback this season,” Mayo stated.
The competitors was fluff in spite of everything.
Jerod Mayo is the most recent coach to be given only one season in cost earlier than being fired.https://t.co/LIr8PTbGY7 pic.twitter.com/VdDhmC0sa4
— The Athletic (@TheAthletic) January 5, 2025
‘We’re a tender soccer workforce throughout the board’
So stated Mayo to the media following the Patriots’ 32-16 loss to the Jacksonville Jaguars on Oct. 20 in London. It was New England’s sixth straight loss following their season-opening 16-10 victory over Cincinnati.
Not solely did Mayo say, “We’re a tender soccer workforce throughout the board,” he took the time to outline what makes a workforce “robust.”
“What makes a tricky soccer workforce?” Mayo requested. “With the ability to run the ball and having the ability to cease the run and having the ability to cowl kicks, and we did none of that right now.”
This was adopted by what was now being known as Walkback Monday.
“We’re taking part in tender,” Mayo stated throughout his weekly WEEI hit. “Look, let me simply go forward and proper that. We’re taking part in tender. As a result of should you return to coaching camp, there was positively some toughness throughout the place. We nonetheless have the identical gamers. We’ve simply acquired to play that approach.”
It labored for Belichick
There was a lot buzz over Mayo’s clock administration late within the fourth quarter of the Patriots’ 25-24 loss to the Indianapolis Colts on Dec. 1 at Gillette Stadium. With the Colts transferring the ball towards the top zone, Mayo didn’t burn any timeouts so as to preserve alive his workforce’s last-ditch drive if wanted.
The Colts, trailing 24-17, rallied for a 3-yard landing move from Anthony Richardson to Alec Pierce, adopted by Richardson’s run on the conversion strive, giving Indy a 25-24 lead. Solely 12 seconds remained within the recreation, which ended with Joey Slye’s failed 68-yard subject purpose try.
“Completely, there was a thought,” Mayo stated afterward when requested if he thought-about utilizing timeouts. “We have now additionally received a Tremendous Bowl right here doing it the opposite approach. Holding our timeouts is what I assumed was finest for our workforce.”
Mayo was referring to the Patriots’ 28-24 victory over the Seattle Seahawks in Tremendous Bowl XLIX, when Belichick allowed the clock to run down on Seattle’s final drive. It labored out for the Patriots, due to Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson’s head-scratching move try to Ricardo Lockette on second-and-goal from the New England 1 that Malcolm Butler miraculously intercepted to safe New England’s victory.
The subsequent morning on WEEI …
“I shouldn’t have stated that,” Mayo stated. “Once I stated it, I used to be annoyed, to begin with, which I ought to have taken a deep breath. I shouldn’t have stated that.”
Did anybody get the license variety of that bus?
The Patriots’ 30-17 loss to the Arizona Cardinals on Dec. 15 was lowlighted by the workforce’s incapacity to achieve an important first down on third-and-1 and fourth-and-1 from the Arizona 4-yard line. The Pats gave it a go on runs by Antonio Gibson and Rhamondre Stevenson, each of which went nowhere, resulting in this apparent postgame query for Mayo: Why not have Maye, a giant, cell quarterback, go for a sneak?
“You stated it, I didn’t,” Mayo replied, which was considered far and vast as a criticism of offensive coordinator Alex Van Pelt. Mayo then adopted up with, “It’s at all times my choice, I might say, look, the quarterback clearly has a very good pair of legs and does a very good job working the ball. We simply selected to not do it there.”
The subsequent morning, on Walkback Monday, Mayo tidied up the remark throughout a convention name with the media.
“I do know there’s plenty of chatter in regards to the query final night time, ‘You stated that,’” Mayo stated. “I didn’t imply something by that. It was extra of a defensive response and, in the end, I attempted to make clear that with the follow-up query. As a result of in the end all of these selections are mine. So simply wished to get that on the market.”
Mayo then pivoted to his weekly WEEI hit, throughout which he stated he “shouldn’t have executed that. Identical to I inform the gamers, I’m nonetheless studying how these items work.”
The benching that wasn’t
On Dec. 28, lower than an hour earlier than the Patriots would host the Los Angeles Chargers, Mayo went on 98.5 The Sports activities Hub’s pregame present and responded to Stevenson’s current fumble points by telling Scott Zolak, “Gibby goes to begin for us right now,” referring to Gibson.
The sport started, and on New England’s first possession, it was Stevenson toting the ball for a acquire of 5 yards.
Why the sudden change of coronary heart?
“Coach’s choice,” Mayo stated after the Patriots’ 40-7 loss to the Chargers.
LIVE: Patriots Postgame Press Conferences: https://t.co/kY9REgnEZn
— New England Patriots (@Patriots) January 5, 2025
The Patriots closed out their season on Sunday with a 23-16 victory towards the playoff-bound Buffalo Payments in what could be the most sparsely attended recreation within the 23-year historical past of Gillette Stadium.
Mayo was requested 15 questions throughout his postgame media availability.
The final query: How would you finest summarize this yr, and did you be taught perhaps that the workforce is just a little bit additional away than you have been anticipating?
“I’m not going to get into that,” Mayo stated. “Like I stated, tomorrow we’ll have plenty of time to speak about these issues, however tonight, it’s all about these guys going on the market and profitable a soccer recreation.”
That’s one Mayo received’t have to stroll again.
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(Picture: Billie Weiss / Getty Pictures)