When Bill Belichick‘s long-standing association with the New England Patriots ended after the conclusion of the regular season, there was much debate about who would replace the legendary head coach.
But for Patriots icon Tom Brady, the decision to promote Jerod Mayo had been in the works for some time. Several years ago, Brady was asked in an interview who he would turn to if an issue needed to be sorted out in the locker room.
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Mayo, who was regarded as a surrogate son for Belichick, was the first name to pop up: “If we want something done, we go to Jerod Belichick,” Brady said.
Now, some way down the line, it proved to be the case as Mayo officially took charge on Wednesday to replace the outgoing 71-year-old coach as he laid out his expectations and what he learned from Belichick.
“One thing I learned from Coach [Belichick], and from Thunder [Patriots owner Robert Kraft], is about just surrounding yourself with good people,” Mayo said at his unveiling.
“Now as far as our staff and things like that, we’re going to be good, we’re going to be a lot better. Now Bill always says this: ‘managing expectations.’
“For me, I’m not trying to be Bill, I’m not trying to be Bill. I think that Bill is his own man, if you can’t tell by now I’m even a little bit different up here. But what I will say is, the more I think about the lessons that I’ve taken from Bill, hard work works, right? Hard work works. And that’s what we’re all about.”
A difficult first task for Jerod Mayo
Mayo won’t need reminding that the job he has taken on is arguably the biggest renovation project in the NFL. Not only is he following in the footsteps of a six-time Super Bowl winner, he has to turn around their fortunes after missing out on the playoffs.
The 37-year-old coach does have the benefit of knowing the organization inside out. He played for the Patriots between 2007 and 2015 and and won a Super Bowl.
He was the inside linebackers coach from 2019 to 2023 in New England, so he knows the best methods from Belichick‘s coaching on the defense side.
The only issue that remains is finding a star quarterback to improve their offensive figures. With an exemplary playing career and working underneath Belichick as a coach, there is no reason to doubt he can turn around their fortunes.
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