Last year, it seemed like the New England Patriots couldn’t wait to fire Bill Belichick. It was a bold move, considering many regard the six-time Super Bowl winner as one of, if not the greatest head coach in NFL history.
Yet, here we are, a year later, and Belichick couldn’t land a head coaching job last offseason. Now, he’s taken his talents to college football, where he’s leading the North Carolina Tar Heels. As for the man who had massive shoes to fill in New England? That’s a different story.
Jerod Mayo was always viewed as a bit of a project. He was expected to need time to thrive, especially with the roster that Belichick left him with. However, few expected the results to be this ugly. The Patriots kicked off NFL games today in position to land the first overall pick in the 2025 NFL Draft. After Sunday’s win, now the Patriots will pick fourth.
While the Week 18 win was nice, New England was hoping for a better performance from Coach Mayo, even in his first season of what was always viewed as a rebuilding period. However, after seeing the Patriots head into today’s Bills game at just 3-14, now owner Robert Kraft ia changing his tune.
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New England Patriots fire Jerod Mayo, links point to Mike Vrabel
The New England Patriots aren’t just bad, they’re one of the worst teams in the NFL. They rank 30th in scoring and 25th in points allowed.
They also lost six games in a row, including last week’s 40-7 debacle before Sunday’s win over the Bills. That’s not a good look for any team, at any level, but especially not in the NFL, where there’s supposed to be a level playing field for all 32 teams.
Now, after just one season, Jerod Mayo has been fired. As NFL Network insider Ian Rapoport hints, Mike Vrabel immediately becomes a likely target in New England. The New York Jets have already interviewed Vrabel, but now the Patriots have a chance to block their AFC East rivals, and chances are there’s no other destination the former Super Bowl winner would likely be in.
The name Mike Vrabel very quickly comes to the forefront. https://t.co/kile8GPj7j
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) January 5, 2025
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Moving on from Jerod Mayo after one extremely tough season indicates that Robert Kraft is getting very impatient. What did he expect, entering the season with a rookie quarterback, an offensive line that can’t protect him, and zero offensive weapons capable of taking a game over? The results were always going to be ugly, no matter who was coaching this team.
Patriots owner Robert Kraft on the firing of Jerod Mayo. pic.twitter.com/f4okDu5XLW
— Albert Breer (@AlbertBreer) January 5, 2025
But now someone else will get a chance to maximize Drake Maye’s potential while hoping the defense comes together too.
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