One day removed from parting ways with head coach Bill Belichick, the New England Patriots have chosen Jerrod Mayo as their new head coach.
Mayo joined the Patriots coaching staff back in 2019 as a linebackers coach following a prolific playing career with the franchise from 2008 to 2015.
ESPN NFL Insider Adam Schefter reported the Patriots have hired Mayo quickly and bypassed the NFL hiring process because there was a succession plan in the contract extension he signed last offseason.
Now Mayo will be the 15th head coach for the Patriots along with being the first African American head coach in franchise history.
New England Patriots: New Coach In
Throughout his time as a part of the New England Patriots coaching staff, Mayo was able to develop a special bond with the players and has gotten support from the locker room.
ESPN reported that players on defense had spoken highly of the former linebacker, hoping he would get the promotion,"I hope they give it to Mayo. He deserves it."
Patriots lineman Deatrich Wise Jr. credited Mayo as the primary reason why the defense had success against the Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen in their Week 17 matchup.
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New England Patriots CEO Robert Kraft has also spoken glowingly about Mayo saying he was a strong candidate to replace Belichick.
Mayo has also spoken about possibly being the Patriots head coach one day.
"Hopefully, as you guys all know, one day I want to be a head coach," Mayo said, via CBS News Boston.
"Where that is, I don't know. But at the same time, I would say I have a lot of love for New England. I have a lot of love for the fans, the people around the building. And you know, my family, they love it here as well. So that would be great if I could stay here and continue to progress throughout my career, but we'll see," Mayo added.
New England Patriots: Rebuild in New England
Mayo has his work cut out for him. The new Patriots head coach would now look to turn around a team that had just finished the season with an abysmal 4-13 record. This was the franchise's worst record since the 2000 season.
The Patriots currently own the third pick in the upcoming 2024 NFL Draft and hope to land an impact player, along with maintaining tons of cap space moving forward.
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