6 rings: 103.7 the fan's bobby belt joins to talk about the possiblity of bill belichick coaching the cowboys
Hello and welcome to the first WEEI.com Patriots Mailbag of the Jerod Mayo era in New England.
Rejoice! The franchise that plays football in Foxborough finally has some clarity on the head coach position as they officially parted ways with Bill Belichick last week and subsequently hired Jerod Mayo as his replacement. Now? The questions regarding a front office, personnel, a supporting coaching staff, and more begin.
A reminder: to stay involved, be sure to keep an eye out for the thread on Twitter @mikekadlick and @WEEI. Don't have Twitter? Email me at michael.kadlick@audacy.com to submit any questions you may have.
So, without further ado, the 2024 offseason begins...
Q: Will the Patriots move on from Bill O'Brien and hire a new offensive coordinator?
A: It has been reported in recent days by both NFL Network's Mike Garafolo and SI's Albert Breer that, while current OC Bill O'Brien is still under contract, the Patriots will be conducting a full search for an offensive coordinator this offseason.
In addition to Garafolo's reporting on O'Brien, he added that former New England OC Josh McDaniels is "at the top of the list for Jerod Mayo's next offensive coordinator."
So, the answer to the question is complicated. While O'Brien will likely still get an interview and a chance to return, he's by no means a shoo-in under the new regime.
Q: So if it's not O'Brien, who are some solid, realistic candidates to be the next Patriots offensive playcaller? Defensive coordinator?
A: Keeping it simple, here's a list of offensive coordinator candidates that I could see being semi-realistic targets for New England:
- Josh McDaniels
- Zac Robinson
- Keenan McCardell
- Nick Caley
- Kliff Kingsbury
As for the defense, two reports surfaced on Monday surrounding the Patriots' vacant DC role:
-- Steve Belichick (as well as his younger brother Brian) has been offered an opportunity to stay with New England. A promotion to defensive coordinator could be in the cards if he remains on staff.
-- The Patriots are scheduled to interview Panthers OLBs coach Tem Lukabu for their defensive coordinator role.
Q: How do you expect the culture to change under Mayo? Thoughts on the general manager situation?
A: One of the main reasons the Krafts were comfortable bypassing an external head coaching search to immediately elevate Jerod Mayo was his ability to lead men.
A product of Belichick's 'Patriots Way', the former linebacker and linebackers coach has an opportunity in front of him to build his own culture and at just 37 years old, has plenty of runway to build and grow.
Mayo is also a former player which, as we've seen with coaches like Doug Pederson and DeMeco Ryans among others, gives him a unique ability to relate with and understand what his players are going through on a day-to-day basis.
The X's and O's could be a concern. But the culture will be fine.
As for the general manager situation, we'll get to that now:
Q: Who is going to make the final call on Draft Day?
A: Following the hiring of Jerod Mayo as head coach last Friday, it was reported by NFL Network's Ian Rapoport that the Patriots would, "now work to hire a GM to work with [their head coach], as the organization gets a total facelift."
It was reported the following day by ESPN's Adam Schefter, however, that not only are the Patriots in "no rush" to hire a general manager, and they might even wait until after the 2024 NFL Draft. NBC Sports Boston's Phil Perry later followed this up by saying the team isn't even expected to hire a GM at all.
Fishy.
Following the flurry of reports, ESPN's Mike Reiss wrote in his Sunday notes that Eliot Wolf, New England's director of scouting, is "viewed by some in the organization as well-positioned to be the choice for more responsibility and to possibly lead personnel efforts."
So that's the GM situation. I assume that, as of now, Wolf has the quote-unquote "final say".
Q: Why would hiring Jerod Mayo come before hiring a general manager?
A: This is a great question. Electing a head coach before having a point person in place to run personnel may seem like a backwards move to many. Generally, either a general manager or GM-equivalent is hired first, or they come in in lock-step with the head coach, i.e. what the 49ers did with John Lynch and Kyle Shanahan back in 2017.
However, I think the reason the Krafts hired Mayo first is that they trust his vision for the franchise and want a general manager (or head of personnel) to fall in line with that, as opposed to vice versa.
Q: Will Bill Belichick's sons stay on the Patriots' coaching staff?
A: Reporting on Monday morning from SI's Albert Breer added some clarity to not only the fate of Bill Belichick's sons, but the entire Patriots coaching staff in New England:
"As for staff, I’d expect the Krafts to empower Mayo to fill out the staff as he sees fit, with some coaches likely to follow Belichick, and for Mayo to conduct a full search for an offensive coordinator. While it’ll likely include incumbent Bill O’Brien, who could also wind up going with Belichick, I think the Patriots are going to be very open-minded in trying to find the right guy for what’ll probably be Mayo’s most important hire.
And, just to wrap this up, one other thing worth noting is that Belichick’s sons, defensive play-caller and linebackers coach Steve, and safeties coach Brian, have both already been offered the opportunity to return to the team for 2024. Mayo and the elder son (Steve) have grown close as they’ve collaborated to run the Patriots’ defense the past five years."
I originally theorized that Steve and Brian would follow Bill, but this reporting certainly adds another layer to the staff split coming in Foxborough.
Q: Will having Jerod Mayo as coach attract free agents to New England?
A: Yes it will -- at least according to one fellow beat writer.
After Jerod Mayo was named the Patriots' head coach last Friday,
MassLive's Mark Daniels tweeted the following:
Several Patriots, including linebacker Mack Wilson Jr., cornerback Christian Gonzalez, and wide receivers DeMario Douglas and DeVante Parker, took to social media this past weekend to express their excitement about the hiring of Mayo. He's clearly liked inside the locker room, which should in turn lure some free agents to Foxborough.
Q: Will Bill Belichick be the next head coach of the Dallas Cowboys?
A: Bill Belichick should absolutely be the next head coach of the Dallas Cowboys.
Cowboys owner Jerry Jones (while refusing to speak about the future of current head coach Mike McCarthy) told reporters that his team's 48-32 loss to the Packers on Sunday afternoon was "the most painful" defeat he's endured since he purchased the team in 1989.
Dallas has won 12 games in three straight seasons under McCarthy, yet their postseason woes continue. The team hasn't reached a conference championship game since 1995.
If Jones does pull the trigger and move on from McCarthy, Bill Belichick is right there for the taking. Former Cowboys head coach Jason Garrett and former Patriots defensive back Devin McCourty spoke about the potential playing on NBC's Sunday Night Football coverage this past weekend:
"They're actually close," Garrett said of the relationship between Belichick and Jones. "They're good friends. They really like and respect each other. But the working relationship? …it'll be interesting."
"If Bill Belichick is the guy that comes in there, this team will never show up for a playoff game like that. That's one thing I promise you," said McCourty. He continued: "If they have the opportunity to get Coach Belichick in there, you don't turn that down."
It makes too much sense to not happen.
It's worth noting that Belichick recently interviewed with the Atlanta Falcons for their vacant head coaching position, so the Cowboys would have some competition for the GOAT's services.
Make sure to follow Mike on Twitter @mikekadlick, and follow @WEEI for the latest up-to-date Patriots and Boston sports news!
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