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New England Patriots head coach Jerod Mayo is 1-6 in his first season at the helm, but his job is definitely not on the line just yet, despite the Patriots' crushing loss to the Jacksonville Jaguars in Week 7.
Mayo entered with five years of experience learning under Bill Belichick as linebackers coach. He also played eight seasons in New England from 2008 to 2015. There was always going to be a bit of a learning curve for Mayo, and rightfully so, taking over for one of the greatest coaches that the game has ever seen.
The franchise hired Mayo in January 2024. He was the obvious choice for the Patriots after being groomed from within the pecking order of the coaching staff. He has also been in New England his entire career as both a player and coach, so Robert Kraft stuck to his typical style of hiring internally.
Belichick left his former colleague with an array of talented players. He drafted the team’s best offensive weapon in running back Rhamondre Stevenson during the 2021 NFL Draft, and a stout defensive unit to build off of over the next few years. But it was always going to be a rough stretch of bringing it all together to win games. That’s where Mayo currently stands with this team.
Not only is he the youngest head coach in the NFL at 38 years old, he’s also been put in a labyrinthine situation that many of the NFL’s savviest and most seasoned football strategists couldn’t fix overnight. The Patriots finished 4-13 in the 2023-24 season under Belichick.
Jerod Mayo calls out Patriots after Week 7 performance
It was interesting to see recently that Mayo referred to the Patriots defense as “soft,” which Belichick publicly took some offense to, via his appearance on The Pat McAfee Show on Monday.
“You know, defensively, the Patriots led the league last year in rushing defense. Yards per carry, No. 1 in the league. And this year, they're way down in the 20s. It's the same guys,” Belichick said. “They re-signed (Anfernee) Jennings. They re-signed (Jahlani) Tavai. Obviously, (Kyle) Dugger. Marcus Jones and (Christian) Gonzalez have been healthy all year, which they were both on IR at this point last year. You've got (Deatrich) Wise, you've got (Davon) Godchaux, you've got Keion White, you've got (Marte) Mapu. … It's a lot of the same players, and in some cases I would say more.
“I'm kind of hurt for those guys. To call them soft, they're not soft. They were the best team in the league last year against the run. Those guys went out there and did it even though we couldn't score many points offensively. I feel bad for the defensive players on that one because that's a tough group. … Those guys are all tough players, they'll strap it up and go.”
It’s uncertain if Mayo is actually speaking out of emotion, if he’s just flat-out fed up with his defense’s effort (36.5 points per game over the last two games), or if it’s a tactic to get them back to playing at a high clip once again.
Drake Maye is the future of the Patriots offense
The defense will figure itself out, as it always seems to for New England. That said, Mayo’s work on the offensive side of the football has to become more of the priority – developing the future franchise quarterback in Drake Maye and the talented receiving corps.
Maye has looked better and better with each snap, since taking over the starting job under center in Week 6. Over the last two games, the rookie has displayed tremendous accuracy (95.1 passer rating), while throwing for 270.5 yards and 2.5 touchdowns. It’s clear now as to why the North Carolina product was selected with the No. 3 overall pick in the 2024 NFL Draft. The Patriots are seeing instant production and development from him after two career starts, which only heightens his overall ceiling.
The Patriots’ expectations are pretty much mapped out for the remainder of the season. They are in no hurry to win now, and the organization is steadfast in its belief in Mayo as the long-term answer. New England has talented cornerstones in place, and they could potentially add another with one of the top spots in the 2025 NFL Draft.
