Mayo is the New Coach

[IdiotKicker]

Per Schefter.

View: https://twitter.com/AdamSchefter/status/1745800729757966447


It’s a new era in New England: the Patriots have hired Jerod Mayo as their next head coach and he will be formally introduced at a press conference next week, a source tells ESPN.

 

[ifmanis5]

That was fast. They are discussing now on ESPN.

 

[Pxer]

Not a big fan, but let's hope he can keep the defense at an awesome level, builds a good culture and they get a good GM. Seems like Jerod became the plan at some point this season given the expediency of the hire. Nail the draft and FA and Mayo's job becomes much easier.

Press conferences will be more fun for reporters.

 

[bluefenderstrat]

I like it—get a forward thinking OC and GM in place and let’s go. Cap space and high picks with Gonzalez basically a 2nd # 1 returning, things could turn around quickly (at least as far as being a playoff contender).

 

[Dotrat]

I’m very happy with this. He’s a very intelligent guy, has experience in business outside football, and is a very different personality from BB. Definitely worth a roll of the dice in my estimation.

 

[amfox1]

Parcells, Carroll, Belichick, Mayo. Big, big shoes to fill. Best of luck.

 

[Reardon's Beard]

Makes sense. The plan from last year at least, just accelerated timetable.

 

[Pxer]

Any chance Steve Belichick comes back? That would be awesome but Bill probably coaches him if he goes elsewhere.

 

[Dave Stapleton]

Arthur Smith would be a great choice for OC I think.

 

[fiskful of dollars]

I loved Mayo as a player. I am leery of a first time HC and would have preferred a more proven commodity. That said, the next great coach is a coordinator somewhere, let's hope we found ours. Curious what happens to the offense this season.

 

[Pxer]

BB was the easiest coach in the world for fans to root for. Mayo will also be easy to root for.

 

[cshea]

I'm mostly curious to see what they do on offense. Does O'Brien stick? Josh has been in the building since Sunday, is he coming back in some capacity or was he just there to honor Bill? Do they look elsewhere?

 

[MuppetAsteriskTalk]

Don't like it, unless they already have their GM and just haven't announced it.

 

[Bob Montgomerys Helmet Hat]

I'm mostly curious to see what they do on offense. Does O'Brien stick? Josh has been in the building since Sunday, is he coming back in some capacity or was he just there to honor Bill? Do they look elsewhere?

I would guess it's more likely that Josh goes with Bill

I think they get their OC from outside the organization

 

[jsinger121]

Not my first choice but I hope he can turn over this coaching staff. First thing is to fire both Joe Judge and Cam Acord.

 

[Ralphwiggum]

Not surprising and much faster than I thought. Still wish they had run an actual process and interviewed multiple guys, but obviously they see something in Mayo they don't want to let go. Hope they are right.

 

[Old Fart Tree]

Of all the linebackers from that draft, the one I picked to one day succeed BB was Shawn Crable, teeny tiny ankles and all.

 

[cshea]

Any chance Steve Belichick comes back? That would be awesome but Bill probably coaches him if he goes elsewhere.

No clue but Mayo being HC probably makes it more likely Steve stays. They would be able to promote him to DC if they wanted and he would get to show he can (or can't, ugh) do it without dad.

 

[Mooch]

Parcells, Carroll, Belichick, Mayo. Big, big shoes to fill. Best of luck.

Looking at it another way, Kraft has a keen eye for managerial/coaching talent for 30 years. Puts Mayo in pretty good company that the organization felt this strongly about him as a leader.

 

[DennyDoyle'sBoil]

That is pretty decisive by Kraft. Clearly he‘s had this in mind as a possibility that made him comfortable enough to part ways with the greatest coach of all time.

That is one hell of a vote of confidence. I am not informed enough to have an opinion about the the hire but fuck it — In Robert I trust.

 

[Cellar-Door]

For what it seemed Kraft wanted (a guy with ties to the dynasty) I think he was the correct pick. I would have liked them to consider a young offensive coach who would bring an inventive scheme, but Mayo is young, he's respected, a lot of the defense will stay and those guys love him.

Question now is offense. Do they keep BOB as the senior guy he can lean on and hope he can do for a new QB what he did for Watson? Or do they go poach somebody to try and bring a new offensive system (Kubiak, Brown, Robinson).

 

[DJnVa]

Not a big fan, but let's hope he can keep the defense at an awesome level, builds a good culture and they get a good GM. Seems like Jerod became the plan at some point this season given the expediency of the hire. Nail the draft and FA and Mayo's job becomes much easier.

He became the plan before this season. It was in his contract, that's why he can be hired without all the other interviews, etc.

 

[Mooch]

Arthur Smith would be a great choice for OC I think.

I think Smith will follow Vrabel to his next stop.

 

[sezwho]

This was Krafts vision and he managed a graceful (ish) transition.

The king is dead, long live the king!

 

[DJnVa]

Prediction--Mayo succeeds (eventually) and after coaching for a number of years, moves into FO as a President of Football Ops or whatever.

 

[Bob Montgomerys Helmet Hat]

I wonder if the parting with BB was actually amicable enough that he and Kraft talked about this and BB gave Mayo his "blessing?"

 

[Petagine in a Bottle]

So maybe it wasn’t the Kraft’s who leaked all those mean stories about Mayo?

The plan a year ago was for Mayo to succeed BB. Kraft is executing on that plan, makes sense to me. Imagine he would lose a lot of credibility with players if he reneged and went with Vrabel or something.

 

[Mooch]

I wonder if the parting with BB was actually amicable enough that he and Kraft talked about this and BB gave Mayo his "blessing?"

That would make some degree of sense, sure.

 

[PC Drunken Friar]

They don't get any extra Rooney Rule picks because he was an in-house hire, right?

 

[cshea]

I wonder if the parting with BB was actually amicable enough that he and Kraft talked about this and BB gave Mayo his "blessing?"

Well supposedly the Mayo succession plan was put into place last year. So presumably Belichick was part of the process to put this plan in place.

 

[CoffeeNerdness]

Arthur Smith would be a great choice for OC I think.

God no. The guy has proven himself to be thoroughly incompetent after spending the year designing red zone plays for the third TE instead of using Bijan F'n Robinson. He got an HC job because he coached prime Henry and AJ Brown. Dude is a moron.

 

[astrozombie]

I am fine with Mayo as coach. I hope they splurge a bit for an OC (I have no idea if Eric Bieniemy would be available) or go young and hungry with the position. Curious who the GM will be since my frustration with BB was on the FO side, rather than the coaching side. Whoever it is, I hope they go in and get a QB/WR combo in the first 2 rounds.

 

[rodderick]

Don't love it because I think it's too big a jump for a guy who hasn't been coaching that long and hasn't called plays. By all accounts the players love him and he's a great communicator, so there's a chance he's awesome as a CEO type. My guess is coordinators, especially on offense, will be very empowered as will the upcoming GM (who I now expect to be someone with close ties to the organization as well).

Would have rather had an offensive minded coach because I think scheme+QB is how you contend consistently in this league, which is why anyone who demonstrates a semblance of competence as an OC is instantly a high profile HC candidate, potentially breaking continuity early in the process even if they do find the guy at quarterback.

I'm not that concerned that he'll emulate Bill, especially in regards to his thoughts about how you play offense, which was the biggest issue Bill had in his last few years here.

I don't know, guess I'm neutral. I see the potential, just think so much still hinges on who will call offensive plays and what scheme will they run on that side of the ball that I would have rather had the HC solve that. On the other hand, this move makes it more likely the defense remains at the very least playoff caliber.

 

[Manuel Aristides]

Mayo is an awesome story. I don't have anything bad to say about him. I see the same rumors and hype stories everyone else does and I guess I just hope they're true.

Because on paper, this does not make a lot of sense to me. You move on from Belichick to hire a guy who has... only ever worked for Belichick? You move on from a guy who has lost his touch on offensive personnel and gameplanning for... a lifelong defensive player/coach?

Presumably more moves are coming, and maybe the whole picture will better explain the plan. But right now this makes it feel to me like Kraft was reactionary more than ready to change the culture.

 

[wiffleballhero]

I wish they -- the Krafts -- had had a plan for a big-brained GM hire who would then, as the actual football nerd, hire a coach.

I hope Mayo coaches the team from now until the end of time, but it seems like a quick move with the order of operations off.

 

[leftfieldlegacy]

Great choice. All reports indicate he is very smart and has good relationships in the locker room but I also get the sense that he has the toughness needed to do this job. Glad they didn't lose him to another team last off season.

 

[Manuel Aristides]

BB was the easiest coach in the world for fans to root for. Mayo will also be easy to root for.

Was he? I think we feel that way because of all the winning, but... he had many scandals, was boring as hell in the press, and expressed some polarizing political opinions. I'm a fan but I wouldn't call it an easy experience.

 

[Eddie Jurak]

1. The move being made so quickly makes me nervous. On the other hand, this wasn't really done quickly - it has been "in the works" as they say.

2. The most interesting thing Kraft said at his presser yesterday was that BB did not have complete and total control of football ops until after the third Superbowl, that at the time he thought BB had earned it, and that subsequent events validated the decision. We can infer from that that Mayo is not getting total control here.

3. My biggest concern with BB in recent years was his apparent insularity - he seems to rely on an ever-shrinking pool of guys to fill coaching and front office roles. I think having a single guy at the helm for too long risks groupthink and the Pats suffered from that to some degree. Whatever else happens, I hope we bring in a GM with real power and with a wider network than just BB guys.

4. I'm very interested to see if Steve B stays or goes. I would handicap it at 80% goes, 20% stays. He goes if any of the following are true:

• He's privy to the behind the scenes interactions between Kraft and BB and believes the Krafts did BB dirty.
• His top priority is coaching with his Dad for as long as he can.
• He and Mayo don't get along or don't see eye to eye on key defensive things and Mayo wants to go in a different direction.

On the other hand, his reasons for staying would be:​

• It would be good for his NFL career to get experience apart from his Dad.
• He and Mayo do work well together and have similar ideas about defense.

If he leaves, I don't think it says much, good or bad. (Because he could leave for concerning or nonconcerning reasons). If he stays, I think it would be a positive sign.​

​

5. The real key here to evaluating this is what happens with the rest of the coaching staff and front office.

 

[67YAZ]

In Yesterday’s statement, Kraft reiterated how he instantly regretted letting Bill leave with Parcells. So Bob avoided the same mistake and elevated the assistant he sees as a future great.

 

[JokersWildJIMED]

Arthur Smith would be a great choice for OC I think.

Assume it will be Bill O’Brien. Seems like the parameters of the transition have long been established.

 

[RIrooter09]

God no. The guy has proven himself to be thoroughly incompetent after spending the year designing red zone plays for the third TE instead of using Bijan F'n Robinson. He got an HC job because he coached prime Henry and AJ Brown. Dude is a moron.

Wasn't sure if his post was serious. The guy completed misused Bijan, Pitts and London all season and refused to adjust because he thought he was smarter than everyone else.

 

[Curt S Loew]

Not surprised it was this fast if his contract language that was recently reported is to be believed. He was gone if they didn't hire him.

I really can't say whether I like it or not at this point. Let's see where things go.

 

[SemperFidelisSox]

Won’t this kind of eliminate a lot of potentially good GM candidates because they are stuck with a head coach, like with the Red Sox GM search?

 

[Ralphwiggum]

Any chance Steve Belichick comes back? That would be awesome but Bill probably coaches him if he goes elsewhere.

Personally I hope they purge the staff of all of Bill's crony and nepotism hires, it is the thing I liked about BB the least and IMO at least partially led to his downfall. I know it is the NFL and some of that is par for the course, but Steve really needs to go elsewhere and prove he's actually a good coach and not just the son of a good coach.

 

[Van Everyman]

In Yesterday’s statement, Kraft reiterated how he instantly regretted letting Bill leave with Parcells. So Bob avoided the same mistake and elevated the assistant he sees as a future great.

Good catch as it relates to this.

 

[Archer1979]

Positives:
He is a known entity as a person to the Krafts and a coach that is both quite familiar with his players and vice versa.

There's no waiting around trying to find a new HC while other teams are still scrambling. One thing Belichick always gave as a negative to winning the Super Bowls is that other teams were already a month into their off-season planning.

He doesn't have GM responsibilities and can focus on being a head coach who is comfortable in his role.

He was left with a good defensive unit.

Negatives:
He will be new to the role and is unproven as a HC. I think that this is the first time the Pats have had a head coach with no head coaching experience at either the collegiate level or the NFL since Raymond Berry (Dick MacPherson was the last HC that had no prior NFL coaching experience).

Most likely, he'll need to retool the Patriot's coaching ranks as I suspect that Belichick (unless he and Kraft made a deal) is going to take a lot of his staff with him (at least his sons).

The new GM is starting with a HC that he did not choose. The caveat to this one is that the GM has not yet been chosen already.

 

[Gash Prex]

Feels like this piece is required reading on Mayo.

https://theathletic.com/4317268/2023/03/20/jerod-mayo-patriots-bill-belichick/

“With his mind and the knowledge he has, it was just a given that he’d get into coaching because it’s teaching,” Ninkovich said. “As far as on-field quickness, he is the smartest guy that I had ever been around. His ability to decipher formations and bark out calls and get people lined up — he was by far the fastest and best that I’ve ever been around.”

“When they talk of the ‘Patriot Way,’ I think of Jerod Mayo,” Spikes said. “That guy never left for vacations in the offseason. He was the first one in the building and the last one out.”

“I thought I loved the game — like really loved it,” Spikes said. “And then I met Jerod and Tom. And then I was like, OK, maybe I just really like it. I don’t love it like them. They just eat and sleep football.”

That’s partly why, teammates felt, Mayo hit it off with Belichick.

 

[Eddie Jurak]

Won’t this kind of eliminate a lot of potentially good GM candidates because they are stuck with a head coach, like with the Red Sox GM search?

I think it could, but not necessarily. Pete Carroll got three years here. I doubt Mayo has any longer of a leash than that.

 

[WayneHousieHOF]

BB was the easiest coach in the world for fans to root for. Mayo will also be easy to root for.

If he wins, I agree.

 

[JimD]

Looking at it another way, Kraft has a keen eye for managerial/coaching talent for 30 years. Puts Mayo in pretty good company that the organization felt this strongly about him as a leader.

That is pretty decisive by Kraft. Clearly he‘s had this in mind as a possibility that made him comfortable enough to part ways with the greatest coach of all time.

That is one hell of a vote of confidence. I am not informed enough to have an opinion about the the hire but fuck it — In Robert I trust.

My thoughts exactly. I trust Kraft's judgment and I like so much about what I've read about Mayo. The boldness and certainty implicit in this move are refreshing compared to what we've been seeing with Henry-Werner and their team. Hire the best available GM and OC and LFG.