The New England Patriots have made a very quick decision on the status of head coach Jerod Mayo.
The Patriots are firing Mayo after one season as head coach, the team announced Sunday. The decision was made after the team closed out the season with a 23-16 win that cost them the No. 1 pick in the 2025 NFL Draft.
In a statement announcing the move, owner Robert Kraft said he opted to make the change after “the trajectory of our team’s performances throughout the season did not ascend as I had hoped.”
The move to fire Mayo is somewhat surprising after just a year, especially since the Patriots had prepped the former linebacker as Bill Belichick’s hand-picked successor. Mayo had played for the team and been on Belichick’s coaching staff since 2019 before he was elevated to the head coaching position last offseason.
The Patriots wound up going 4-13 in his only season, and the insipid performances over the last month of the season seemingly played a role in Kraft’s decision.
The Patriots’ job will be widely coveted, in large part due to the presence of quarterback Drake Maye, who looks like a future star. It’s safe to assume one name in particular will be heavily linked to the position.
