Whether a mutiny really is brewing inside the Patriots locker room is up for debate. Jerod Mayo is operating as though there isn’t one.
The tenor of the Patriots locker room has been a subject of much fascination since a team employee said on a team-produced podcast that the locker room was teetering on “mutiny” over how the quarterback situation is being handled.
Such a report would grab attention in the first place. That it came from a team employee is head-turning.
Any player that has spoken about the matter publicly since has not confirmed that such frustration is building. Among them includes Jahlani Tavai, who is in his fourth year with the team and told The Greg Hill Show on Friday that no such thing is taking place.
The Patriots head coach was asked about the report Monday in his weekly appearance on WEEI.
“The mutiny report is what it is, guys put out things all the time. If it’s true or false, that’s for you guys to decide and you guys put your spin on those things. …” Mayo said. “What I will say, when a player comes out and says – look, you guys use what the players say, and they also use you guys as vessels to get the word to the players as well. Because they all listen to it, they all read it, see it on social media.”
Mayo then was asked point blank if he thinks there’s a mutiny.
“I don’t think so, but I’m the last to know,” Mayo said, with the “last to know” line being a callback to Hill informing him that the captain is always the last to know about a mutiny.
The Patriots quarterback situation has been under the microscope since they drafted Drake Maye. They’ve been content to ride with Jacoby Brissett, which early on seemed to be a prudent decision given that the disarray of the offensive line would theoretically put the rookie at risk.
However, the 15-10 loss to the Dolphins on Sunday was further evidence that Brissett is just too ineffective, and the door now seems decidedly ajar for Maye to start Sunday against the Houston Texans.
Even if the locker room isn’t in a full-blown mutiny over the team’s handling of the quarterback, it’s plausible that some would voice frustration directly to Mayo. He would not offer specifics when asked whether players privately are backing Maye.
“I don’t want to get into what players have told me in my office or anything like that," Mayo said. "But, once again, we have to take a look at everything.”