Mayo plays coaching future close to vest
Jerod Mayo has ambitions of becoming a head coach in the near future, and the Patriots will likely have a decision to make this offseason about whether Bill Belichick will continue in his role.
Mayo, who stayed on New England’s staff after reportedly turning down an interview for Carolina’s head coaching job last offseason, was asked Tuesday how he feels about the state of the Patriots and whether he expects to eventually become Belichick’s successor.
“You’ve been here long enough, I bet you can say the answer that I’m about to give you,” Mayo said. “We’re 100 percent focused on the Chiefs. I only try to control the controllables and that’s out of my control. Hopefully as you guys all know, one day I want to be a head coach. Where that is? I don’t know.
“But at the same time, I would say that I have a lot of love for New England. I have a lot of love for the fans, the people around the building, and my family, they love it here as well. So, that would be great if I could stay here and continue to progress throughout my career, but we’ll see. And honestly, there’s really no anxiety to it. I’m not trying to get too spiritual, but wherever God wants to take me, I’ll be ready to go.”
Mayo is focused on his duties as linebackers coach, he said. Belichick’s son, Steve Belichick, also coaches linebackers. Asked how the dynamic between the two works when they disagree on coaching points, Mayo referenced his long relationship with Steve, who joined the staff while Mayo was a player.
“As far as our relationship goes, those years on [injured reserve] I spent a lot of time just in the dungeon. We called it the dungeon,” he said. “We would go in there and break down film and just talk ball. Hearing it from a coach’s perspective, of one of the greatest head coach’s sons, hearing it from that perspective, and then I brought the on-field perspective.
“Even back then, we’re talking 2013, 2014, we just had a connection. We just spoke the same language. Obviously, I grew up in this system and hadn’t played anywhere else. With that being said, when we game plan and talk to the players and things like that, it’s very natural. I love coaching with Steve. I love coaching with our entire staff even though we have one of the smallest defensive staffs in the league. Steve and I have a very good chemistry and hopefully that continues.”
Swift response from O’Brien
Will Taylor Swift show up at Gillette Stadium on Sunday to watch Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce? Offensive coordinator Bill O’Brien chuckled when asked if the Patriots had a plan in place for the possibility of an appearance by the pop star.
“I don’t know. I don’t even know how to answer that,” O’Brien said. “I’ll follow Bill’s lead on that. We’re very focused on the Chiefs. Trying to game plan for their defense is hard enough as it is, not really focused on Taylor Swift. But, yeah, I don’t even know how to answer that question, I’m very uncomfortable right now.”
Mayo explained some of the matchup problems Kelce could present in coverage.
“When you look at Kelce, I’m just telling you, this guy is probably one of the best ever [to] find space in zones,” Mayo said. “On a piece of paper it can say one thing, but once you cross the white line it comes down to instincts and things like that. He has phenomenal instincts in zone.
“I would also say that in man-to-man coverage against a guy like Kelce, he’s a tough, savvy tight end who has been doing this for a long time. Always has been a huge challenge for us. And then when you have a quarterback like [Patrick] Mahomes and those guys are on the same page, once again it’s not on a piece of paper, those guys have built a relationship over time and you can tell those guys are on the same page.”
More praise for Zappe
O’Brien said he’s observed a steady, one-playat-a-time approach from quarterback Bailey Zappe, whose three touchdown passes helped spark the Patriots in Thursday night’s win against the Steelers.
“I think at the end of the day, as a young player he’s very grateful for the opportunity that he has,” O’Brien said. “And he’s going to try to go out there and try to do what’s best for the team. I think that’s what Bailey does. We have to have a good week here and see how it goes, but he did a good job of that on Thursday night.”