Jerod Mayo is Putting Out a Lot of Fires Around His 'Soft' Team

It's often been said that hard times create strong men. Strong men create good times. Good times create weak men. Weak men create hard times. And that good men who were strong players but become head coaches who want to be less tough on their players than their strong predecessors often create soft football teams. Or words to that effect. 

It's been a hell of a few days for Jerod Mayo, who was hired to not only replace Bill Belichick, but to bring in an entirely new culture. A different approach, not only to how his players are coached, but how they're regarded and treated. While no one was expecting him to have his players standing on their desks reciting Walt Whitman, it would be less like Whiplash than they'd been accustomed to for 24 years. 

"Demanding, not demeaning" was how Mayo described it. "I’m a huge believer in having a shared vision where the players have stock, the players do take accountability,” he told The Athletic back in the spring. "Everyone is happy, running around, and the vibe of the building is different." 

Which sounded good. Not that anyone who was there for nine trips to the Super Bowl and six banners was used to hearing such Mission Statement-sounding talk about having stock, taking accountability, and vibes. But after going five seasons without a playoff win and going 6-18 from Thanksgiving of 2022 to January of 2024, it wasn't unreasonable to think maybe it was time to look at the post-Dynasty problems through a fresh set of eyes. 

Speaking personally, as hard as it was to see Belichick escorted to his car carrying a box of his personal effects, I figured that if you're going to change coaches and vibes, you might as well change. Go all in. 

But 41.17% of the way through the season, no one would argue it's been working. The Patriots have lost six straight for the first time since Drew Bledsoe's rookie season. They're essentially last in offense and passing offense (the teams below them have had their byes). Drake Maye has begun solving a lot of those issues. But the defense that was supposed to give us hope has turned into a gift from the Fantasy football gods week after week. And all the happy, running around, vibe of the building that is so different has resulted in a lot of things that are not good. 

There was this in the preseason:

… which led to Judon successfully shooting his way out of town. 

Then in those happy, carefree days when they were still 1-1, you had Davon Godchaux saying some of his teammates are "selfish."

And since losing yesterday, you had a couple of veterans questioning their team's preparedness:

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Then two of the receivers taking to the socials to sort of cryptically make some point or other. First KJ Osborn celebrated his touchdown catch by releasing this text exchange. Which was believed to be between him and his agent, but is not:

The background of this is that Osborn was not expected to dress for the London game after being a healthy scratch the last two weeks, but was a last minute addition to the 53. Still, it's not what you post if your focus is entirely on getting on the field and beating the Jets next Sunday. 

Then there was Ja'Lynn Polk. He of the 10 receptions on 25 targets. The 0-for-3 yesterday. The drop rate of 16.7%. And the contested catch rate of 27.3%. And this whoopsie, tripping over a blade of grass as his team tried to make it a one-score game:

Polk went the emoji route. Which could mean a lot of things but probably doesn't express accountability for his mistakes and his determination to do better:

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Or maybe it does. I don't read Hieroglyphics. But in my world, majorly screwing up each of the four times your teammates were counting on you is the perfect time to put your phone away and lay low. What do I know? 

All of which is a long windup and a lot of background to get to the actual point of this post. Which is Jerod Mayo doing damage control. From his video press conference:

Q: Are you concerned sometimes with the messaging is different, the way it's received with those guys, because they haven't invested those hours with you and the staff out on the practice field, in the weight room, et cetera, to really fully buy in?

 

JM: No, that's a good question. Look, we're all continuing to get better, continuing to learn from one another. I would say the messaging is the messaging. When you hear me say we played soft, that's how I feel about it. 

Q: Hey, Jerod. I had a question about the whys of some of the things that you were talking about with the team, saying they played soft, and also some of the comments afterward with Kendrick Bourne, in particular, about maybe guys weren't as engaged as they should be in off-the-field habits and things of that nature. … He was saying guys staying up too late, maybe not having the best diet and off-field preparation. It wasn't necessarily off-the-field, other aspects.

 

JM: To me, that's part of being a professional. That's part of being a professional. This is your job, and your job's not only inside this building but also outside this building. Taking care of your body and all that stuff, that's part of it, and that equals longevity in this league. For me, the messaging is we just need to get better. We have to do everything a little bit better.

Then came his weekly appearance on WEEI. Where he drew the distinction between "being soft" and "playing soft":

At my age, and after 30 years of marriage, I can relate. Sometimes you just have to work with what you've got. 

Then he addressed Polk jumping on the 'Gram, and gave it his full-throated endorsement. Even if he didn't understand it any more than you or I did:

Instead, he just repeated what he'd said earlier, that he didn't think his team's 2nd round pick and wideout who took 57% of his snaps was "mentally ready" for the game. Which is a bold statement. And definitely, without a doubt, represents a change from the way player issues used to be handled. Just not in a way I think any Patriots fan expected when the change was made back in January.

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We'll see how this new approach shakes out in the long run. While admitting the obvious: It's been an abject failure through seven games. I'll say this though. As someone who lived through the mercifully short Rod Rust Error:

… I'll take Mayo's method over a guy who loses 24-3 and says he's proud of his team's effort. If you're in your 30s, you might remember stories about Pete Carroll's Gentle Parenting approach. How he reported would discipline a player by telling him to run laps, then when the guy was out of sight, pour water on his shirt to make it look like he'd sweated through it and then absolve him of his sins. 

Neither of those methods worked. But we got a quarter century of results from treating players like they were indentured servants in the Feudal System. And it worked pretty well. Better than Mayo's so far. Anyway, it kept players from running to their phones and reporters for airing of the grievances every time something bothered them. Self-disciplined players loved it. Thrived under it. And did a hell of a lot of winning. 

Plus I seem to recall the head coach almost never having to spend 24 hours trying to clarify what he meant by what he said. Jerod Mayo is a smart human being. He'll no doubt figure out exactly how he wants to manage people and get the most out of them. He just better do it quickly, for his sake and ours.