Whoever replaced Bill Belichick was going to have an almost impossible task.
Beyond Belichick’s six Super Bowl titles with the New England Patriots, his poor personnel moves in his final seasons with the Patriots left the franchise with a talent-deficient roster. The next coach would probably lose a lot of games in a franchise that had grown accustomed to winning.
Jerod Mayo was in a no-win situation and it was no surprise that he came up short. It was a bit surprising that his tenure lasted only one season.
Mayo was fired after just one season coaching the Patriots. according to ESPN’s Adam Schefter.
Belichick lasted 24 seasons in New England and Mayo, a former Patriots linebacker and then an assistant coach under Belichick, didn’t make it two. His last game as New England’s head coach was beating the Buffalo Bills in Week 18…to lose the first overall pick in the NFL Draft.
The Patriots started Mayo’s first season well, with a surprising victory against the Cincinnati Bengals. Early in the season, an outmanned team was competitive. There weren’t many wins, but that wasn’t a big surprise. The Patriots turned to rookie quarterback Drake Maye, the third pick in the draft, and he played quite well under the circumstances.
But as the losses piled up, there was more criticism of Mayo’s coaching and speculation that he might be fired at the end of his first season. There was a report late in the season that Mayo was safe barring a collapse, but a 40-7 loss to the Los Angeles Chargers in Week 17 that left New England at 3-13 didn’t help.
The Patriots will still have a depleted roster for the next coach, but at least Maye offers some hope for a quick turnaround. Mayo was not given the opportunity to see if he could be the one to turn things around.