Mixed messaging is becoming worryingly common from New England Patriots head coach Jerod Mayo, who is trying to back off apparent criticism aimed at offensive coordinator Alex Van Pelt.
Mayo made the controversial and bizarre remarks after the Pats were beaten 30-17 by the Arizona Cardinals in Week 15. They were perceived as a possible critique of Van Pelt’s play-calling, specifically, the decision not to let rookie quarterback Drake Maye run on 3rd and 4th-and-1 at the Cardinals’ four-yard line late in the third quarter.
It was an uncomfortable exchange, and Mayo sought to clarify his comments, per ESPN’s Mike Reiss. He quoted the coach saying, “I didn’t mean anything by that. It was more of a defensive response. I tried to clarify that with the follow-up question [Sunday], because ultimately all those decisions are mine. … I didn’t want to go down that whole rabbit hole trying to explain all those things.”
Reiss also noted how Mayo admitted “in his weekly radio interview on sports radio WEEI that he ‘shouldn’t have done that. Just like I tell the players, I’m still learning how those things work.’”
Learning on the job is natural for a first-year head coach, but inexperience only partly excuses Mayo’s latest gaffe. His performance in front of the media has caused consternation more than once this season, representing a change in how the Patriots portray team affairs to the public.
Jerod Mayo Appeared to Blame Alex Van Pelt
He might not have meant it, but Mayo’s ham-fisted answers to questions about play calling in Arizona did Van Pelt few favors. Reiss provided a transcript of the post-game confusion, showing Mayo’s initial response when asked if the Patriots ought to have let Maye run, “You said it. I didn’t.”
That blunt retort made it sound as though Mayo would’ve called a Maye run, but Van Pelt opted against using the concept. Coach and coordinator not being on the same page is never a good thing, but it would be particularly damaging for a rebuilding team pinning its hopes for a recovery on a gifted, but raw quarterback.
Maye’s development needs to be carefully managed via a coherent strategy. It doesn’t sound as though this regime has one of those, but Mayo at least tried to present a united front: “We’re all on the same page. I think Alex and the offensive staff do a good job putting together the game-plan. I go in there and offer my two cents and we come out of the room as a unit — all on the same page.”
That’s a decent party line, but not everybody is convinced the Patriots are a united front with a head coach in firm control.
Image of Patriots is Changing
For years, the Patriots presented themselves as the model of an efficient professional sports franchise. That efficiency came from Mayo’s predecessor Bill Belichick, who kept his comments to the press brief and clipped, rarely giving anything away, but always putting the focus on winning the next game.
Mayo has not demonstrated similar focus. Especially when he appeared jovial during his weekly appearance on “The Greg Hill Show” for WEEI a day after losing to the Cards.
Mayo’s light-hearted manner and attitude were described by Dakota Randall as “a perfect encapsulation of the cultural u-turn in Foxboro — for better or worse.”
Captioning Randall’s post, Doug Kyed of the Boston Herald highlighted the difference between Mayo and Belichick: “Maybe it’s because we’re preconditioned to treat every loss as a catastrophe because of how Bill Belichick acted for 24 years, but it is a little jarring to see a Patriots head coach laughing, smiling and joking the Monday morning following a loss. And it does explain the change in how players react in the locker room following losses given the change in vibe or culture or whatever you want to call it.”
There was a ruthless commitment to winning under Belichick, and the Patriots were made to feel uncomfortable when they didn’t deliver. The same pressure appears to be absent, despite Mayo’s willingness to assign blame publicly. He’s not been shy about calling out his own team, something Belichick has questioned.
A growing sense of dysfunction is perhaps inevitable after Mayo took the giant step up from inside linebackers coach to the top job. His task was also made harder by the wreckage of Belichick’s final years at the helm, including last season’s 4-13 finish.
Those factors might earn Mayo a free pass, but the more he errs in front of the cameras, the more the 38-year-old risks appearing out of his depth.
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