To say that the New England Patriots have had an unconventional start to their offseason would be an understatement.
Fresh off their worst performance since 1992 in posting a 4-13 record, the Pats mutually parted ways with six-time Super Bowl champion Bill Belichick.
After failing to really conduct a search for a replacement, New England hired assistant Jerod Mayo as Belichick’s replacement.
As all of this was going on, not a single member of the Patriots’ organization held the general manager title. Remember, it was Belichick who found himself in control of player personnel and the 53-man roster during a majority of his time in New England.
Now that NFL free agency is set to start in less than a month, Mayo has yet to fill out his coaching staff. Meanwhile, the Pats remain without a general manager. It’s an odd situation.
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New England Patriots talk of the NFL during Super Bowl Week
According to Phil Perry and Albert Breer of NBC Sports Boston, New England was the talk of Super Bowl LVIII in Las Vegas this past week. Their take on the situation and rumors flying around the NFL is eye-opening to say the least.
There are a lot of layers to this. It’s being noted that New England is not going to conduct interviews for the general manager position until after the 2024 NFL Draft.
The Patriots select No. 3 in the annual event. Rumors continue to link them to trade-down scenarios leading up to the draft.
Of course, NFL free agency is set to start on March 11. New England apparently won’t have a general manager in position by then. It has an estimated $70 million in cap room and is expected to be active on the open market.
Why would a team go through these two potential franchise-altering events, only to hire a general manager after the fact? This is especially true with New England’s quarterback situation up in the air following numerous reports that the team is going to move off former first-round pick Mac Jones this offseason.
As of right now, current director of player personnel Eliot Wolf has control over the 53-man roster. There is a chance he’s simply promoted to the GM role after the draft.
Either way, New England has been the talk of the NFL for all the wrong reasons this offseason. It’s going to be interesting to see what happens with Robert Kraft’s team moving forward.