On Monday, Patriots head coach Jerod Mayo joined “The Greg Hill Show” for his weekly “Mayo Monday” appearance after his team snapped their six-game losing streak on Sunday, beating the New York Jets 25-22 and moving to 2-6 on the season.
Heading into that Week 8 matchup, noise was at an all-time high for the first-year head coach, as his players, the media and fans alike spent the week reacting to Mayo’s postgame comments from Week 7, where he called his football team “soft” after a loss to the Jacksonville Jaguars in London.
One of those media members was Mayo’s former head coach and mentor Bill Belichick, who used multiple platforms to criticize Mayo’s tactic of questioning his team’s toughness, saying Mayo should have pointed the finger at his coaching staff rather than the players.
“Look, I think when you criticize your team publicly like that, it doesn’t always go over well,” Belichick said on his SiriusXM podcast. “Now every coach has their own style, And you know, maybe sometimes that can be effective and all. But ultimately, I always felt like when the team played bad, that was my responsibility, too.”
He added on ESPN, “I’m kind of hurt for those guys, because to call them soft - they’re not soft. But, they were the best team in the league last year against the run. And those guys got out there, went out there and did it, even though we couldn’t score very many points offensively. So I feel bad for the defensive players on that one because those guys, that’s a tough group.”
SEATTLE, WASHINGTON - OCTOBER 05: Bill Belichick, former NFL coach, looks on during the game between the Washington Huskies and the Michigan Wolverines at Husky Stadium on October 05, 2024 in Seattle, Washington.Steph Chambers/Getty Images
With all that second guessing, the tactic by Mayo worked, as his team got a hard-fought, come-from-behind win, all while losing their starting quarterback Drake Maye to a concussion midway through the second quarter, as well as losing starting safety Kyle Dugger just before kickoff to an ankle injury.
It was time to second guess the second guessing.
“A part of that huge noise outside the building was led by the guy you replaced,” said WEEI’s Chris Curtis. “And I know you don’t want to get into personal stuff, but is it surprising on any level for you that a guy you played for, took you at [10] overall, worked on his staff for years, is so quick to criticize and sort of knock you when you’re down?”
“You know, look - I learned a lot from [Belichick],” said Mayo. “I learned a lot on the field, off the field, all those things. And saying that, I just gotta, I have to do what I believe in, and that’s what it comes down to.”
Mayo has consistently said that transparency will be a part of who he is with the media, echoing that sentiment again on Monday when Curtis said the noise was at a “fever pitch” for the team in the lead up to Sunday’s game.
“You know, we talk about transparency, which I’ve tried to be with all of you guys,” said Mayo. “To me, transparency is what I want you to see. I’m not gonna say everything that is under the curtain, no. But at the same time, the relationship with the media, I think, is important.
“So even in saying that, you say, ‘Is that a fever pitch?’ For me, it doesn’t matter. As long as the fam straight, I’m straight. This isn’t really adversity.”
MIAMI GARDENS, FLORIDA - JANUARY 09: Head coach Bill Belichick of the New England Patriots and inside linebackers coach Jerod Mayo talk on the sidelines in the fourth quarter of the game against the Miami Dolphins at Hard Rock Stadium on January 09, 2022 in Miami Gardens, Florida.Mark Brown/Getty Images
Looking ahead to Week 9, the Patriots are in a position to go on their first two-game winning streak in two years, as they’ll take on a Titans team sporting one win, coming off a blowout loss in Detroit in Week 8.
Currently, both BetMGM and FanDuel list the Patriots as a 3-point road underdog.
