Looking at how the Patriots coaching staff is set up, some might look at it and say Steve Belichick and Jerod Mayo are competing with one another in a way.
Both could make cases they should be defensive coordinators, but Belichick is the outside linebackers coach, while Mayo is the inside linebackers coach. And then last year, Bill Belichick revealed Steve is the defensive play-caller.
Speaking to the reporters earlier this week, Steve was asked about his relationship with Mayo and he revealed they spent a lot of time together years ago when the linebacker was still playing. He said both of them were in "dark" places, which has led to their relationship being as good as it is.
"Yeah, me and Jerod, we've known each other for a long time," he said. "Back when I was a QC (quality control) and Jerod went on IR those couple years, he spent a lot of time with me. We called it back in the dungeon. He was in a dark place. I was in a dark place. So, we spent a lot of time together. It was really, really beneficial for me as a young coach to get an elite player's perspective. And I'm sure at the time he didn't think he would be coming down this path, but he just kind of got to see the other side of it.
"He's always been an extremely hardworking person, both as a player and coach since I've known him. So, he was always around the building. When he was finishing up his rehab, he'd come in there, help me break down film. And again, me just teaching him the concepts and what we were looking for as coaches and him telling me the player perspective. And it was really, really beneficial for me, like I said, to hear firsthand just the two of us in a room together, no filters or anything like that, no one to try and impress, just two guys learning about football from different perspectives. So, it was great.
"And then obviously, finished off a great career, went into corporate for a couple years, and then ended up coming back and it's been awesome just working with him, spending a lot of time with him in the building. And yeah, I can't say enough good things about him, all the things I've learned from him, both about football and in life. So it's been a pleasure to work with him. I'm very fortunate to have a guy like that on the staff, along with the rest of the guys, but just to answer your question specifically."
When Mayo spoke this week he said he has aspirations to one day be a NFL coach, while Belichick hasn't given any indication one way or the other.