Bill Belichick’s replacement has lasted just one season.
The New England Patriots fired first-year head coach Jerod Mayo after going 4-13 in his first and only season, including a franchise-defeating Week 18 win over the Buffalo Bills. the first overall pick in the 2025 NFL Draft.
Patriots owner Robert Kraft confirmed reports of Mayo’s firing in a lengthy statement explaining that the front office will remain intact heading into the offseason.
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New England Patriots head coach Jerod Mayo calls on his players during the first half of an NFL football game against the Los Angeles Chargers, Saturday, Dec. 28, 2024, in Foxborough, Mass. (AP Photo/Michael Dwyer)
“After today’s game, I informed Jerod Mayo that I will not be returning as head coach of the New England Patriots in 2025. For me personally, this was one of the hardest decisions I have ever made,” Kraft said.
“I have known Jerod for 17 years. He earned my respect and admiration as a rookie in 2008 and throughout his career for his play on the field, his leadership in the locker room and the way he carried himself in our community. When he joined joined “Our coaching staff, his leadership was even more evident as I saw how the players responded to him. When other teams started asking to interview him, I was afraid of losing him and committed to making him our next head coach.”
Kraft went on to say the move comes because he feels fans deserve a better on-field product in the future.
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“Since purchasing the team, I have always considered myself and my family as custodians of a public good. We have enormous fans who expect and deserve a better product than we have delivered in recent years,” Kraft’s statement reads. . “I apologize for that. I have given a lot of thought and consideration to what actions I can take to expedite our return to championship contention and have determined that this action was the best option at this time.”
After a 10-7 season in 2021, the Patriots have been trending in the wrong direction, going 8-9 in 2022 and 4-13 the past two seasons.
This season, however, saw a changing of the guard at the head coach for the first time since 2000 when the Patriots and Belichick mutually parted ways after he led a dynasty to six Super Bowl victories alongside Tom Brady.
New England Patriots head coach Jerod Mayo talks with quarterback Drake Maye (10) during the fourth quarter of an NFL football game, Sunday, Dec. 22, 2024, in Orchard Park, New York. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar)
As Kraft points out, Mayo understood the pedigree of being a Patriot both as a player and a coach, which led to the decision to make him Belichick’s replacement since he was already in the building and the players respected him.
But the Patriots also understood that Mayo was inheriting a roster that was among the NFL’s weakest entering the 2024 season, and the projected win total of 4.5 for the year reflected what experts believed would happen in the season. May inaugural campaign.
But Kraft and the Patriots seem to feel that the lack of talent on the roster isn’t the only thing that needs improvement heading into the 2025 season later this year.
Mayo made some interesting headlines throughout the year, including publicly calling his team soft after the team’s sixth straight loss in October. He also noted that the Patriots would “burn some money” in free agency immediately after being named head coach, and he had to draft that statement later to say the team would be prudent with its cap space.
Mayo, however, played to win even though quarterback Drake Maye, the team’s third overall pick in 2024, handed the reins to his backup, Joe Milton III, who had a big game in Week 18.
New England Patriots head coach Jerod Mayo listens to a reporter’s question during a news conference after an NFL football game, Saturday, Dec. 28, 2024, in Foxborough, Mass. (AP Photo/Michael Dwyer)
The Patriots won 23-16 with Milton going 22 of 29 for 241 yards with a touchdown pass to Kayshon Boutte, who finished with 117 yards passing. Milton also ran for a touchdown in the game where the Bills rested most of their starters.
However, the victory caused the Patriots to lose the number one overall pick when the Tennessee Titans took over that position in the NFL Draft. The Patriots will also pick fourth overall behind the Cleveland Browns and New York Giants.
Looking ahead to the head coaching search, former Patriot and veteran head coach Mike Vrabel has already been mentioned as a potential candidate the Patriots could bring in to replace Mayo.
