Breaking from Belichick protocol
The Patriots are not known for transparency. They are known for opacity. When in doubt, obfuscate. Bill Belichick is the master of the non-answer answer, whether in the form of long sentences filled with lots of words but little substance in a midweek press conference or short grunts and monosyllables at a losing postgame lectern.
But suddenly, a little before 7 p.m. Thursday, the Patriots drew back the curtains, opened the windows, and let the light shine in. That’s when the team broke their Belichickian protocol, sending out the following news release while matching it with accompanying posts to social media:
“The New England Patriots and Head Coach Bill Belichick have begun contract extension discussions with Jerod Mayo that would keep him with the team long-term. In addition, the team will begin interviewing for offensive coordinator candidates beginning next week.”
That the Patriots need to make both of these moves is not the debate. Mayo, their inside linebackers coach and de facto co-defensive coordinator, is a hot coaching commodity. And their offense is broken.
That they would give the football world the satisfaction of hearing them say it out loud? Unprecedented.
And, we all know, not the preferred way for Belichick.
But times have changed in Foxborough, where yearly Super Bowl expectations have been replaced by a yearly prayer to even make the playoffs (one that went unanswered this season). Belichick, on the back nine of his legendary career, has no choice but to go along with this new plan of trans
parency.
There are benefits to doing it this way that go beyond the surface satisfaction of an Itold-you-so schadenfreude from a media contingent that’s been pressing Belichick all season. And Belichick seems willing to accept them, likely the reason that while he certainly didn’t come up with the idea of announcing the team’s intentions, league sources confirm that he didn’t push back on it either.
First, the desire to retain Mayo, who quickly emerged as one of the coaching market’s top prospects, reportedly courted by the likes of Carolina and Houston for their head coaching positions and elsewhere for defensive coordinator jobs.
The Patriots don’t want to lose a former-player-turnedcoach who has impressed everyone inside the building with both his knowledge of X’s and O’s and his relationship with players and fellow coaches. Nor do they want him to get far down the road with another team and then change his mind, a la the Josh McDaniels 2018 Colts fiasco.
So they made the preemptive announcement, one that won’t guarantee Mayo stays in New England but at least lets other teams know the Patriots want him to stay and that he has earned whatever new title and responsibilities the Patriots presumably will offer.
It’s a similar message with the offense, where it would be understandable if potential outside coordinator candidates just assumed Belichick would stick with past pattern and stand by his buddy Matt Patricia, despite the obvious shortcomings the longtime defensive coach had in running this Mac Jones-led offense. In announcing their intention to interview candidates, in posting stories to the in-house website listing potential candidates (Bill O’Brien, Kliff Kingsbury, Zac Robinson, Nick Caley, Charlie Weis Jr.), the Patriots might not have gone so far as advertising the opening on LinkedIn, but they’ve made it clear their human resources department is listening.
Just as owners Robert and Jonathan Kraft have made it clear that Belichick is listening to them, at least as it relates to getting the message out there. Remember, this is the same head coach who refused to announce the 2019 hiring of Greg Schiano as defensive coordinator but had to let his public relations department announce the departure of Schiano when he resigned before ever getting to the regular season, eventually returning to be head coach at Rutgers again. Silence was always the de facto Belichick way.
But the stonewalling had to end, at least with decisions as important as these. When Belichick held his season wrap-up news conference the day after the loss to Buffalo, he didn’t openly admit to his mistake in entrusting the offense to Patricia and Joe Judge.
Asked in a roundabout way if his personnel decisions had left the offense vulnerable, Belichick, said, “Well, every decision that we’ve made has always been made with the intent to do the best thing for the football team. That’s the way it always will be. That’s what it’s been, that’s what it’ll be going forward. At different decision points, you have different opportunities, and as those go along or come along, we’ll continue to evaluate them and always do what we feel is best for the team.”
As usual, a lot of words, but little substance. But then came Thursday, when two sentences issued by the team said so much more, said everything about how two coaches with barely any offensive experience between them predictably failed, and how it is time to try and correct that mistake.
Tara Sullivan is a Globe columnist. She can be reached at tara.sullivan@globe.com. Follow her on Twitter @Globe_Tara.