Patriots head coach Jerod Mayo was pulling any punches on Monday morning during his weekly interview with The Greg Hill Show.
WEEI’s Greg Hill began to ask, “There were some reports this week that the organization was calling around, asking for the best way to develop a young quarterback, is that -”
Before Greg could finish his question, the first-year head coach cut him off.
“Yet we sit here and say, ‘He’s developing at a good trajectory,’” said Mayo. “Can we all agree on that?”
“Yeah,” the entire WEEI crew said in unison.
“Alright,” Mayo responded. “So, like, all those reports are false.”
“They’re all false?” clarified Greg.
“They’re all false,” Mayo responded abruptly. “None of those reports are true.”
Greg is making reference to a report from Sports Illustrated’s Albert Breer, where he said the Krafts have “done some research over the last few weeks on how to handle a young quarterback,” calling around the league for advice to avoid a failure of development like they had with Mac Jones just one QB cycle ago.
According to Mayo, this never happened.
“Once again - like, it’s almost like talking out of both sides of our mouths,” said Mayo. “Like, we’re sitting here saying, like, ‘He’s developing great.’ And then to sit here and the story come out that people are asking around how to develop a quarterback.
“Look, I’ll take bullets - I shouldn’t say bullets. I will take all the shots and all that stuff in regards to our record, our team, our development. That’s fine, that’s part of being a head coach. The one thing that being a head coach - I need to make sure I do a good job protecting our coordinators, our coaches, and also the players on the field. And so when you hear one person, ‘Oh, Drake’s not developing.’ Another person, ‘Oh, well Drake’s had great plays.’ Like, who do you think’s responsible for that? It’s [offensive coordinator] Alex Van Pelt. He’s responsible for that.
“And so why even call around to ask how to develop a quarterback? Yet everyone in the New England area, you just said Sean McVay included on the West Coast, is like, ‘Hey, this guy’s developing at a good rate, and he’s going to be a good football player in this league.’ That to me is the frustrating piece of it.”
After some back and forth with the hosts, Mayo sarcastically asked, “Who made the calls?”
“Albert Breer reported it,” said WEEI’s Chris Curtis.
“And I love Albert Breer,” said Mayo. “I do.”
“But he said it was the Krafts,” said Greg.
Piggybacking off of that, Curtis asked, “So my question to you, Jerod, is - so Albert Breer reports that. Do you talk to Robert or Jonathan and say, ‘Is this true?’”
“We have open lines of communication,” said Mayo. “We have open lines of communication. This is not true.”
“Do you take it as a shot at you that they’re reporting that?” Curtis followed-up.
“I mean, look - that’s up to you to decide,” said Mayo. “I don’t look at it as a shot towards me. Look, I have a good relationship with ownership. I have a good relationship with our coaches. Unnamed sources and all that stuff - I mean, is what it is.”
Whether the Krafts made these calls or not, it’s clear that Mayo is using this as an opportunity to build up Van Pelt, who has been among the most criticized members of the organization throughout the 2024 season. With Maye looking as good as he has through five career starts, it’s a great opportunity to give his offensive coordinator his flowers as a way to tamp down the noise and frustration surrounding his 3-8 football team.
Regardless of the record or any reported phone calls from ownership, Mayo is happy with where Maye is headed in his development.
His team may have lost 28-22 in Week 11 at home to the Rams on Sunday, but his rookie quarterback looked the most comfortable he has looked so far this season operating the offense.
Maye was 30 of 40 for 282 yards with 2 touchdowns and 1 interception. He also kept his scrambling to a minimum, with only 3 rushes for 27 yards. That’s a huge development as the rookie QB has had issues keeping himself out of harm’s way since taking over the starting job in Week 6.
“How much of [Maye’s] development, where he is now, do you put on making the right decision to sit him for the first five weeks?” asked Greg.
“I mean, that’s for you guys to sit here and debate about,” said Mayo. “You could see the other quarterbacks in the league, the first round guys, and I’m sure you guys could debate about those as well. There was a point in the season where everyone was like, ‘Oh, all these teams made the right decision,’ and now they’re looking back at it like, ‘Oh, maybe we should’ve sat him.’
“And then vice versa - you know, our record right now, obviously, is not where we want to be. But the other side is, ‘Well, we should have started him in the first game.’ So, like, that’s for you guys to sit here and talk about, not me.
“I will say this - I feel good about the trajectory that he’s going on. I would also say, as you guys continue to, or I shouldn’t say ‘you guys,’ as people continue to be excited, which it is exciting to have a quarterback go out there and play like that - we need to continue to manage our expectations, and realize that he is a rookie quarterback. And hopefully he continues on this trajectory, because that will help us become a good football team.”
The Patriots play their third road game in four weeks in Week 12, as they head down to Miami to take on the Dolphins.
This divisional game is a rematch from Week 5, where Miami came into Foxborough and beat New England 15-10 in what would be Jacoby Brissett’s final game as the starting quarterback for the Patriots.
The Patriots are currently listed as significant home underdogs for this matchup at both BetMGM (+7.5) and FanDuel (+7).