The Wheels are officially off in Foxboro
The wheels have officially fallen off in Foxboro. The latest embarrassment for the Patriots seems to have been the straw that broke the camel’s back for even the most forgiving of reporters in Boston.
Bill Speros - Boston Herald
Gillette Stadium wasn’t overrun by the Visigoths. Nor did it fall to an invading army. And it wasn’t conquered by rebel forces.
The House of Kraft turned out to be a House of Cards once Tom Brady and Bill Belichick weren’t around to kick anymore.
It followed a path paved by the likes of Kodak, Xerox, the Soviet Union, Bradlees and the Spanish Empire from invincibility to historic footnote.A quarter-century of dominance and intimidation ended in silence.
It succumbed to the Biblical parlay of time, hubris, vanity, and greed.The official time of death came during the Patriots’ loss to Arizona on Sunday.Robert Kraft’s decision to name a neophyte as Belichick’s replacement triggered its own self-destruct mechanism. A non-lethal poison pill.
Especially a rookie head coach whose inability to handle the minimal tasks required of an NFL head coach becomes more glaring each week.
A depressing and scathing review of the Kraft’s mismanagement post Brady. Non of it all that debatable and this season is certainly a nail in this coffin.
Chad Graff - Athletic
But 14 games into a painful season for the Patriots, the hard truth is that Mayo isn’t learning nearly fast enough. His team makes the same mistakes week in and week out. He does, too, forced this week to spend another Monday cleaning up his remarks after another bad loss Sunday.
Teams often take on the personality of their coach, and the Patriots have become repeat offenders of the same weekly mistakes with an undisciplined brand of football. Mayo said he wanted to give his young players more time. Then second-year safety Marte Mapu was a healthy scratch, second-round pick Ja’Lynn Polk played 39 percent of the snaps and fellow rookie Javon Baker didn’t play any. Mayo harps on his players being disciplined, only to routinely watch his players take costly penalties (the Pats are the 11th-most-penalized team in the NFL). He emphasizes third downs, only to watch his team consistently struggle there (the Pats are tied for 29th in the league with a third-down conversion rate of 34.3 percent).
We know Gonzalez is really talented. We also know the Pats hit on Maye, who offers a ton of promise if he’s given a better supporting cast.
But we also know that Eliot Wolf’s roster is among the worst in the league and that the Patriots have gotten worse at pretty much every position besides quarterback in the last year. And we know that Mayo’s preparation and coaching aren’t giving his team enough of a boost, even while recognizing the disadvantage he faces when every opposing team has better players.
None of that is going to change with three games left. So buckle up. There will probably be more of this before the offseason blessedly arrives.
“I kind of sound like a broken record standing up here being disappointed after a performance like that,” Mayo said.
Mayo’s post game performances have really hurt him this year. The on field shit shows could almost be forgiven with his inexperience and the terrible roster. But, then he steps in it so often after these losses that he has deteriorated any good will or confidence a coach in his position would have. As a “CEO” head coach with basically zero experience he was supposed to minimally come in and improve the culture. Improve it from Belichick big bad old meany atmosphere into a positive uplifting player friendly environment. Well, that only goes so far when you’re getting your doors blown off and throwing your OC under the bus while disingenuously taking “ownership” for decisions and play that ultimately is his fault. God damnit, he sucks. Just shut up already.
Ben Volin - Boston Globe
The best path forward is for the Krafts to act like fans, which means that every decision should be geared toward getting the most out of Maye, their golden asset.
The Patriots already wasted Maye’s rookie year with inexperienced coaches and little talent. The next two to three years need to be about maximizing Maye’s cheap rookie contract window.
That means the Krafts need to open up their wallets and make first-class hires for their first-class franchise…
Bringing back Mayo, Van Pelt, and the current staff, and hoping they take a massive leap forward in their second year, is too idealistic. Most likely, it’s just wasting another season of Maye’s contract.
Maye’s presence allows for an upgrade. Last year, the Patriots practically had to beg coaches to come be their offensive coordinator. Now coaches are jumping at the chance to coach Maye, who looks like a legit franchise quarterback…
the path forward is becoming clear. Making piece-by-piece changes to the coaching staff isn’t going to work. The Krafts need to move on from everyone, starting with Mayo.
Ultimately, Mr. Volin lays out the most distinct path forward. But, certainly the toughest. As he points out it’s no small thing to fire a 1st year head coach. Especially one you are so personally invested in. However, if they wanted to spin it, Mayo was basically and interim coach because Belichick forced his way out of town a year or two earlier than expected. Most of the front office and defensive staff all stuck around. AVP came in as Head Coach offense and Ben Mcadoo was hired for something, we’re not sure what. But, there are familiar faces all over the joint. A clean slate this year could be an actual clean slate. From the front office down to the Assistant RB coach. Get that stank the fuck up outta here.
Some of the Boston media may see things in a more realistic light. Like who is the most likely scape goat. After Mayo so subtly threw him under the bus after the Arizona loss it doesn’t take much to believe Alex Van Pelt will be the sacrificial lamb here. Don’t get me wrong. He’s earned it.
Andrew Callahan - Boston Herald
Out of 32 teams, the Patriots offense and defense both rank 30th by the opponent-and-situation-adjusted metric, DVOA; meaning they are a bottom-3 team on both sides of the ball.
EPA doesn’t paint a much prettier picture. The defense still ranks 30th, while the offense jumps to 25th, or the eighth-worst ranking in the league. Over the course of the season, the defense has regressed hard, while the offense received a notable boost from Maye, but still can’t escape the bottom 10, dragged down by the NFL’s worst pass-protecting offensive line and a bad receiving corps.
Based on those numbers we should be back talking about shipping everyone out of town. This is the NFL though and offense rules. We can’t be the 3rd worst offense in the league with a good QB and keep your job.
Chris Gasper - Boston Globe
there was no misunderstanding the disapproval cresting from the owner’s box to the head coach’s dais to the players’ locker room in Arizona directed at offensive coordinator Alex Van Pelt.
Their words represented Van Pelt’s Waterloo. There’s no coming back from that degree of public second-guessing. There’s no coming back, period. Admittedly, Van Pelt is handcuffed by what he has to work with, but he’s not the right fit for the head coach/offense role that’s going to make or break the Jerod Mayo regime.
The fastest way to rehab a failing coaching regime is changing coordinators.
Why are the Steelers averaging more points per game (24) than the Chiefs after finishing bottom five in the NFL last season? Did Mike Tomlin become an adopted Shanahan in one offseason? Nope, he hired former Falcons head coach Arthur Smith as his OC.
Mayo needs a proven offensive mind, preferably with head coaching experience, as his co-pilot to prevent his coaching career from crashing. Think Brian Daboll or Mike McCarthy if they’re ousted by the Giants and Cowboys, respectively.
With Van Pelt, there was no continuity to his play-calling, no visible identity, no plan … and, ultimately, no future.
A second season of AVP is DOA.
When Gasper is bashing you, it’s all but over bud. This feels like an article coming from a place of knowledge. AVP is on the chopping block and the flood gates are open. Its open season on OC’s in Foxboro.
Greg Bedard - Boston Sports Journal
In reviewing the film, I was struck by two bigger factors:
- The failure to prepare the offense for what they might see from the Cardinals;
- His plan in this game was way too complicated for a challenged group playing on the road.
We all know about the talent issues along the Patriots' offensive line. They basically have backup-level talent at every position outside of Mike Onwenu, who is starting to play like his old self. That happens in the NFL, just about every week. You don't just throw your hands up and toss in the towel, saying you can't block this week. It's on the offensive coordinator and offensive line coach to determine what exactly the linemen at hand can execute. If that means you can't run everything you want to run, then so be it.
We know the Patriots are not good on offense, but they aren't that bad, especially on the offensive line, and haven't been that bad this season, all things considered
It's just the offensive coordinator hung them out to dry by using blocking schemes that were way too aggressive on the road and against a more complicated opponent than he anticipated.
re-signings regressing is a bad coaching sign.
Mike Onwenu.
Anfernee Jennings.
Joshua Uche.
Kendrick Bourne.
Hunter Henry.
Kyle Dugger.
Jabrill Peppers.
Christian Barmore.
Rhamondre Stevenson.
Jahlani Tavai.Can you make the argument that any of them, besides maybe Henry, has not regressed this season?
Those guys were brought back to be the backbone of this team, the hold-the-fort guys while the young players and additions got up to speed.
And none of them were really that great against the Cardinals. It's Week 15. What are we doing?
Any team that has ever made a turn around after a season like this has shown signs of improvement in the last few weeks of the season. They knock off a team as a spoiler or several key young players are identified as a core. Hell, an identity or core philosophies start to get cemented. None of that is happening outside of Maye and Gonzales look to be very good players. Clearly those two aren’t enough especially when they are held back by poor game plans, bad play calls, and worse leadership from the coaching ranks. The Kraft’s have avoid the elegant solution this time and side with reason here and make the tough call. There are good bonafide options for head coaching candidates this year. Foxboro is a desirably destination with the draft status, QB, and cap space. Everyone seems to see that clearly. Lets hope they do too.
HOT SEAT: POPULATION MAYO
The Patriots have 4 games remaining in the season. The first 13 have been underwhelming at best; and those results have the media questioning Jerod Mayo's future. Everything is on the table as the Patriots move towards a critical offseason. Mayo has given us more than enough reasons to question his ability to lead the franchise through this important time. Let's see what the consensus is on the topic.
Greg Bedard: Boston Sports Journal
"The Patriots have only improved in special teams and pass offense (by two spots right now). The rest of the team has backslid. The most distressing part is the defense, which endured plenty of injuries last year (especially at cornerback) and still finished in the top 10. For a defensive head coach, who helped direct the unit last season, to see his defense tumble from 9th to 31st (against the easiest schedule) is flat-out embarrassing. If you're weighing what kind of head coach Mayo might be, if he can't get his side of the ball to play better (and, in fact, regress badly) what hope should you have that he can lift up the rest of the team? And, of course, there are the multiple game management issues from Mayo that have cost the Patriots in winnable games against the Seahawks, Dolphins (QB Tyler Huntley), Jaguars, Titans (Mason Rudolph), Rams and Colts.
The Krafts were alarmed when the team was 1-6, which is the time ownership started to have communications around the league. It wasn't just about how to support a rookie quarterback, as it was reported. The conversations were also about how to support Mayo better going forward (which is the preference), and if that was even possible. They also did some research on Mayo's final years on the staff to get a better sense of his role in the demise of the team. They began to understand why Mayo rubbed some people the wrong way, including Mayo's perceived disrespect of Belichick and Bill O'Brien. Multiple sources said Mayo was harsh about the offense in staff meetings while expressing that his side of the ball was fine. The Patriots named Mayo head coach on Jan. 16. Two days later, O'Brien agreed to become the offensive coordinator at Ohio State (before the Boston College job opened up).
As of today, I would say the odds are strong that everyone is retained and they try to add some more experienced hands and swap out some positional coaches. But the final four games will have an impact, one way or the other. If the Patriots conclude the season losing their final seven games and some are lopsided, anything could be possible."
The reports of Mayo trashing the offense last year is new to me. If that is true; toot toot for us. We've been saying the guys is a phony. He is positioning himself as a culture setter. However; he was undermining and creating a toxic culture himself last year. With a toxic culture this year seems to add up he could be a problem.
Bill Barnwell of ESPN
"Leaving the endgame scenario aside, Mayo's defense has unquestionably been disappointing. The Pats had the league's best defense during the second half of the 2023 season by points allowed per drive and EPA per play, and that was with the worst average starting field position of any team and without stars Matthew Judon and Christian Gonzalez. Nobody expected them to be good on offense this season, but even with Bill Belichick leaving, the hope had to be that they could keep themselves in games by thriving on defense.
Instead, the Pats rank 19th in points allowed per drive and 29th in EPA per play. Gonzalez has excelled, but Mayo's defense hasn't found a formula that works. With Judon in Atlanta and no recognized star edge rusher on the roster, they are blitzing at one of the highest rates in football. After blitzing 32.3% of the time last season, they are back at that mark again, with their 32.4% blitz rate ranking sixth.
What needs to happen next: Patriots fans have gotten on Mayo for some late-game decisions and the frustrating play of the offense. I'd be surprised if New England made a change just one year after letting Belichick go, but with four games against teams that are .500 or better after the bye, the Pats just lost their best chance at a victory in December. Can they improve in the red zone? That would be a positive step heading into 2025."
Chad Graff of the Athletic
"Jerod Mayo’s first decisions this offseason will likely revolve around his coaching staff. Will he make any changes? On one hand, it’s hard to envision running things back with the same group given the underwhelming season so far (unless things really change in the final four games). On the other hand, Mayo could be looking for continuity and loyalty as he enters Year 2. The guess here (and this is just a guess) is that defensive coordinator DeMarcus Covington is on shakier ground than offensive coordinator Alex Van Pelt given the defensive falloff this season. Some positional coaches could change, too."
Mike Giardi of Boston Sports Journal
"Is one year - not even - insufficient time for a first-year head to take over a bottom-of-the-barrel roster and make it look decidedly different? Yes. Yes, it is. That said, should Mayo, his staff, and players have shown more growth than we've seen to this point? Yes. Yes, they should. And while Drake Maye has given the offense a serious injection of life - the Pats are averaging a touchdown more per game with him as the starter - the operation is still as messy as ever. They're 9th in the league in penalties, can't seem to craft a gameplan to affect opposing offenses (their pressure rate is in the bottom three in the league), and still struggle mightily to protect their own quarterbacks, whether it was Jacoby Brissett (pressure rate at 50%) or Maye (39%). Yet, Mayo's confidence in himself and his potential for future success has not waned.
"100%. I know I'll be successful. 100%. And look, you're going to go through these trying times. Like, that's what it is. The mark of a true leader is being able to navigate this and knowing that you're going the right way. And I truly believe that we are going the right way. In the short term, it may be disappointing, but in the long term, we're doing it the right way."
The more I read Giardi the more I agree with him. I always thought he was a cunt whenever I would see him on television. When you take away his cunty appearance and mannerisms; seems like this guy gets it.
Derrick White to Golden State
“At some point, Boston’s going to have to make a bold trade to ensure sustained success during the Tatum/Brown era, which would look like parting ways with one of Jrue Holiday, Derrick White, Kristaps Porzingis, or Payton Pritchard in exchange for a package of young talent.
It just so happens that the Warriors are lookingfor a two-way guard on the trade market right now to make up for De’Anthony Melton’s absence.
All-World defender and excellent shooter Derrick White would fit like a glove alongside Stephen Curry, but the Celtics wouldn’t possibly part ways with White … right?
On the contrary, it’s not impossible and might even make sense for Boston.
Consider the following package that Golden State could send Boston for White: Jonathan Kuminga, Brandin Podziemski, and Kevon Looney.”
COLIN KEANE
What a crock of shit. The Celtics are now in the realm of any power house that has all their core players signed for the next few seasons.
Jrue Holiday- signed till summer of 2028
Derrick White- signed till summer of 2029
Jaylen Brown- signed till summer of 2029
Jayson Tatum- signed till summer of 2030
Kristaps Porzingis- signed till summer of 2026
Payton Pritchard- signed till summer of 2028
Sam Hauser- signed till summer of 2028
Why would the Celtics entertain any deal that sends one of the biggest fan favorites in the city, who as you can see is locked up for another 4 years, to a team that the region hates for 3 roll players that wouldn’t fit in this rotation?
Answer:they wouldn’t
This is how they try to break the moral and the core. Throw outrageous trade rumors to bring down the team. They did with Jaylen a couple years ago and they are doing it again. The NBA 2K wouldn’t even accept this deal. There isn’t one player on this team as of this writing that I would ship out. This team is the favorites to win the NBA championship this year and the season after that, and *IF the day comes to ship someone out, they do have a player and he wears number 7 for your Boston Celtics. But that’s a story for another day and a few seasons away.
Patriots in Freefall: How Jerod Mayo's Inexperience and a Culture of Losing Are Sinking New England
The Patriots are in a very dangerous position
Coaching does not win football games. But, it can lose them. It can also establish a core tenant in the organization that losing is okay. When losing is okay it deteriorates the club from with in. Players start looking out for their next contract instead of the guy next to them. The desire to push through a horrible weather game or tough tackle or take a big hit drains out of the souls of football players. We saw it from the other side for 20 years in Foxboro. Players who looked like they had grasped their last breath as an NFL player were revitalized in New England. They found new life because of the demands of a winning culture and the success that followed with good coaching, mentorship, and leadership. In a word there was pride. As this season wanes on the pride to be a New England Patriot fades with it. When the light goes out it’s very hard to turn it back on. The Krafts are making a massive mistake allowing the acceptance of losing in whatever effort they believe is being put forth to bring them back to a competitive franchise.
Andrew Callahan - Boston Herald
Blame for what happened similarly splintered across the locker room, though few players bothered to pick it up.
Godchaux, who had a front row seat to Richardson’s two-point conversion, told reporters he did his job.
Jabrill Peppers suggested the defensive linemen had to play better.
One of those defensive linemen, Keion White, said he knew Richardson would run, while another, Christian Barmore, argued he was illegally blocked on the play, and may have had a case.
One thing they could agree on: this defense is not together. Not sound. In other words, broken.
“We’re just not playing cohesively as a defense,” White said.
“We’ve just got to play more fundamentally, I guess,” Peppers shrugged.
“It’s too late in the season to be saying, ‘this game we were close,’” Christian Gonzalez lamented.
… the Patriots have rookie coaches Jerod Mayo and DeMarcus Covington, who can’t glue the pieces together. Can’t solidify simple fundamentals. Can’t coach up a steady pass rush. Can’t iron out communication issues in the red zone. Can’t average even one takeaway per game.
Can’t get their defense to simply wait out opponents like the Colts and quarterbacks like Richardson, who typically beat themselves. Did you know their only win the past five weeks came against the Jets? Or that Richardson has nine fumbles this year? Or his season-long completion percentage sits below 50%?
A far too public display of Mayo’s lack of accountability is on his own side of the ball. As a defensive player and coach the cliff this unit has fallen off of since Belichick’s departure is uncanny. They rank at the bottom of the league in every statistically category imaginable. They just let a QB beat them with a 55.7 rating. Communication was supposed to be Mayo’s strong suit. That strong communication was supposed to build comradery and respect resulting in unity. That has not happened. Mayo has failed in his core believes and tendencies and refuses to or is unable to apply discipline in it’s place. The results are evidence that this franchise is taking a turn to the dark side. Starting with comments like this from Keon White
“You never want to lose, and people’s jobs are on the line. So just keeping your job, for real,” White told me. “And making sure, the GM knows what you can do. That’s how I see it.”
Doug Kyed - Boston Herald
“Defensively, we had a few drives there that were good drives,” Mayo said Monday morning in a video conference call. “Obviously, if you take away that last drive – I think it was 17, 18 plays – we’re all feeling a little bit better about the game.”
Mayo had a similar sentiment about his team after losing to the Dolphins, saying, “I think the team has definitely gotten better. You take the Miami game out and look at the last four, we’ve done a lot of good things.” The Patriots defense allowed two 50-yard runs against the Texans in Week 6. After the game, he said, “You take those away and it looks a lot better, but at the same time, that’s what the NFL is. You’ve got to limit those big plays.”
Mayo was asked Monday morning what kind of message it sends to the team to continually ask to remove the worst thing that happened to properly assess the team.
“When I talk to the team, I tell them all the time, I don’t have a crystal ball on what play is going to be important, but you’re exactly right. That’s what the NFL is. The NFL comes down to a few plays, and that’s really my message when I say it,” Mayo said. “It comes down to a few plays. You look at it from one way, if we would have done this, and then you look at it the other way, we didn’t get it done. That’s kind of why we’re here now. We’ve had seven one-score games, and I think we’re 2-5 in those games. We’ve just got to be better. Again, that’s what the NFL is.”
Mayo is no stranger for putting his foot in his mouth. He has done since the second he got the job. But, what Doug Kyed points out here is right on the money. How does Mayo think games are won? Is he of the belief that one day the plays that contribute to actually winning just happen? Or is he aware that it’s his job to develop the habits and skills in his players in order to execute those plays when it matters. Another example of conceding the losing because it’s all part of the process. You sound like the 76ers. Who havent won shit since “Trusting the process”. It would be one thing if there were clear fundamental building blocks we could see in these losses, but that’s not the case. Out side of Drake Maye just being good it has been a see saw of suck all season. P.S. losing with good to really good QB play in the NFL these days is a real neat trick.
Ben Volin - Boston Globe
Mayo has been coaching conservatively all season — punting on fourth and short, taking field goals instead of going for it, and against Tennessee, kicking the extra point to go to overtime instead of going for 2 points and the win.
But Steichen didn’t hesitate to go for it, keeping the offense on the field when the Colts scored with 12 seconds left to cut their deficit to 24-23. Steichen didn’t come to Foxborough to play for overtime — he came to win.
The Patriots rushed for 200 yards and averaged 6.5 yards per carry. They went 6 for 11 on third down. They held the ball for more than 34 minutes. Maye completed 24 of 30 passes and made several big plays. They forced two interceptions for the first time all year.
But they were undisciplined with penalties again, committing seven for 88 yards and getting two touchdowns wiped off the board. And they let the Colts march 80 yards in 19 plays with the game on the line, unable to make the plays when it mattered most.
It appears that the Patriots still are soft, as Mayo called them several weeks ago.
▪ The biggest difference between the teams — the Colts thrived in gotta-have-it situations. The Colts went 3 for 3 on fourth down, 3 for 4 in the red zone (3 for 3 in goal to go), and nailed their 2-point attempt in the closing seconds. Another terrible reflection on the defense led by Mayo and defensive coordinator DeMarcus Covington.
Mayo and the Patriots were the better team, but Steichen and the Colts showed them how to play to win.
Nicole Yang - Boston Globe
… Mayo, who is still trying to find his footing and establish a culture in his first year as head coach.
Through 13 games, Mayo’s decision-making has repeatedly come under fire.
Related: ‘It’s a bummer.’ It sure is, Drake Maye. The Patriots are letting The Kid QB down.
The Patriots have bungled clock management in end-of-half situations. They’ve been conservative on fourth down. They’ve challenged some seemingly obvious calls and stood pat on some more questionable ones. They don’t seem to have an overriding identity, with Mayo saying everything is evaluated on a case-by-case basis.
Not calling a timeout amid a lengthy, critical drive could be excusable as an isolated incident. But Mayo’s list of head-scratching decisions continues to grow.
On the Patriots’ final possession, one of desperation as they had just 12 seconds, Mayo decided to send kicker Joey Slye out for a 68-yard field goal rather than keep the offense on the field for a potential Hail Mary.
“Not sure what the numbers are on a Hail Mary vs. the field goal there,” Mayo said. “But that’s what I felt was right.”
The longest kick of Slye’s career (and Patriots history) was 63 yards in Week 4 this season. The longest kick Slye said he’s made during practice this year was 63 or 64 yards in end-of-game, end-of-half simulations. A 68-yard attempt, even if not by much, is outside of his range. Slye noted that Sunday’s chilly temperatures were not favorable, either.
A Hail Mary, unlike a 68-yard field goal, has at least happened before, on multiple occasions. Although both outcomes have a low probability, there is precedent for a Hail Mary from the 50-yard line. Just this season, Aaron Rodgers and Allen Lazard connected for a 52-yard touchdown for the Jets the end of the first half in Week 6. And the Commanders’ Jayden Daniels had his pass tipped right into the arms of Noah Brown in the end zone in Week 8.
Mayo and his staff’s inexperience has been chronicled a lot this year and rightfully so. But, plenty of inexperienced coaches still have plans and goals and philosophies they intend to carry out. This team apparently does not. They have been reactionary all season long. There defensive game plans have just been non existent. They can’t communicate well enough to line up correctly never mind deploy a scheme. It comes as no surprise to see them struggle. But, it’s one thing to struggle with things like in game clock management or on the fly decisions. It’s another to be making those calls with no fundamental plan or ideology behind it. Let me make it simple for you. A young, struggling, impressionable team that has now shown they can put a few points on the board should be ultra aggressive all the fucking time. Please see the Colts on Sunday or the Detroit Lions and Dan Campbell who Mayo has spoke so much about.
Chad Graff - Athletic
The Patriots have scored just five touchdowns on their last 16 trips inside the opposing 20-yard line, a streak that dates back the last four games. Against the Colts, it was a huge issue, especially early. They moved the ball well for most of the game, but stalled over and over in the red zone.
In the first three quarters, they reached the red zone five times. On those drives, they finished with just 13 points — one touchdown, one interception, one missed field goal, and two successful ones. Even on their go-ahead scoring drive in the fourth quarter, the Patriots made life tougher than it needed to be when a touchdown came off the board after an illegal shift penalty, backing them up before running back Antonio Gibson ran it in from 11 yards out.
A lot about the Patriots has improved with Maye taking over, but the red zone is an area that needs to get much better. — Graff
Offensively you have to tip your hat a bit to AVP since Maye has been named the starter. This makes since. Van Pelt although has little to no experience calling an offense (Unsurprisingly his biggest weakness) has been in the league for nearly 30 years as player or a coach. The rest of the staff doesn’t have 30 years combined at their positions. Not even close. I think that average is about, oh I don’t know, zero?! The Conservative nature of this staff shows up with every trip to the Red Zone. It’s either being too conservative or the lack of play calling experience when the field shrinks. I lean towards both suck. They just clam up in their own pool of suck and ineptitude when it matters most.
Drake Maye is good and great to watch. Maye should be your sole focus when worrying about the direction this franchise is heading. In there current situation and looking ahead, Drake Maye has a Matthew Stafford trajectory written all over him for his career as a New England Patriot. Ya, the one where he’s surrounded by a bunch of bozos so he leaves 10 years from now and wins a Super Bowl with winners.
LOSER'S LAMENT
Giardi: Mayo's messaging makes no sense, and his Patriots keep repeating the same mistakes
Mike Giardi - Boston Sports Journal
The first-year head coach wanted us to "take out" the pair of long runs by the Texans in that 20-point defeat. He wanted us to "take out" the loss to the Dolphins and "look at the last four; we've done a lot of good things." Mayo wanted to dismiss Cooper Kupp's overall impact in the 28-22 defeat to the Rams, "Look, Kupp had the one reception, which was a huge chunk of those yards…
… "You look at it from one way, if we would have done this, and then you look at it the other way, we didn't get it done. That's kind of why we're here now. We've had seven one-score games, and I think we're 2-5 in those games. We've just got to be better. Again, that's what the NFL is."
He's right about that. A dozen games this weekend were decided by seven or fewer points. That tied a league record set in week two of this year. There's been no fewer than five one-score games in a week this season; on average, it's nine per week. So welcome to the club, Jerod.
That’s the headline I was looking for!! Really could not have said it better myself. It is a loser’s lament culture building down at Gillette if it has not already taken full effect.
Matt Doloff - 98.5 The Sports Hub
Jerod Mayo has a clear way he wants to coach, and he’s aggressively sticking to it.
After the Patriots’ shocked the Bengals in Week 1, Mayo spoke of empowering both players and other coaches to do their jobs, functioning as a hands-off overseer. SI’s Albert Breer previewed Mayo as a “walk-around head coach.” Polar opposite of a puppet master.
Mayo appears to be a head coach who simply refuses to turn up the dial on his subordinates. His now-iconic quote, “Once those guys cross the white lines, there’s nothing I can do for them,” may have had a dash of context cooked out of it in some media cauldrons, because he still hits you with the “It starts with me” every week. But it still sends a distressing signal.
It validates those of us who are wondering: What does Mayo do on Sundays, then? If he’s not going to call any plays, request any adjustments, or convene with any players, then he better call a crisp game, make cleaner big-picture decisions over the course of the 60 minutes…
There is a glaring reason why Jerod Mayo has not taken greater steps to intervene with his coaches or his players. He doesn’t know how. Coaching matters on the margins against similarly talented teams. The Patriots had more than enough talent on the roster to win that game against the Colts on Sunday. They approach and decisions made by the coaches lost the game. Period.
Jerod Mayo is unfit for his position. The Kraft’s plucked him out of a pile of sycophants waiting to board a plane after following chasing the Kraft tale to Jerusalem. They fast tracked him through the “Kraft Management Program” at Optum, guaranteed him a contract behind the back of the Greatest Coach of all time and the Greatest deployer or Spite all time while he was still under contract. That back fired. So, they upped his timeline in a panic with no concrete plan. Mayo is unqualified for his position.
There is no path out of this den of losers with out bringing in experienced qualified outside help to assist Mayo in the areas of weakness. Which is all of them.
The Drake Maye Hype Train Builds Up Steam and the Defensive Struggles
After six starts Drake Maye has New England fanbase and media gushing. The hype train is getting ready to leave the station. I'm as jazzed up as anyone about the potential he flashes and what it could mean for the Patriots. In contrast to the excitement on offense is the weekly ineptitude we see on defense. The knives are coming out on Mayo and Covington.
Greg Bedard of Boston Sports Journal had this to say on Maye's performance on Sunday.
"Drake Maye was sensational: Aside from the last play - which might not have been his fault - I thought Maye was in total control today against a very good defense. He finished 30 of 40 for 282 yards and two touchdowns (100.2 rating). Maye added 3 rushes for 27 yards."
"Maye was in complete command nearly the entire game. He looked like a 10-year veteran calmly dissecting a good Rams defense."
"The Team Offensive Throw Success Rate of 65% is fourth-best in Week 11 (and higher than Matthew Stafford - 55.6%) He did this despite having the 4th-highest pressure rate 39.1%. He was blitzed on 37% of dropbacks (fifth-highest of Week 11). "
"Basically, Maye was dealing.
He's also single handedly lost the Rams and Titans games. But we don't talk about that. I get it sex sells. Maye acknowledges and owns the mistakes but we need to call out the trend.
Ben Solak ESPN grades Drake Maye
“Maye's accuracy is eye-popping -- especially for a guy tagged with some footwork and mechanics concerns coming out of the college ranks. On throws of 10-plus yards downfield, Maye is ninth best in off-target rate, yet bottom five in EPA per dropback, success rate, explosive play rate and first-down/touchdown rate. If that doesn't tell you about the limitations of the Patriots' receiver room, I don't know what does.
The report card: Maye has been everything the Patriots could have hoped for with the third overall pick. He's decisive, accurate, tough and explosive. He makes plays within structure and outside of structure, and he's maximizing a receiver room that would be challenging for many first-year signal-callers to elevate. The way he is erasing the impact of the leaky Patriots offensive line is particularly impressive and bodes extremely well for his future.
Maye is liable to take a bad sack-fumble or throw a big pick, but you expect those plays to go away with time as he continues to adjust to NFL speed and coverages.”
The grade: A
Behind the Pay wall: Moving on from Alex Van Pelt
The report this week that the Patriots organization was asking for help on how to best move forward with their rookie quarterback has made waves across the Boston sports media spectrum. The initial read on this was that the Patriots would be moving on from Alex Van Pelt as Offensive Coordinator. This makes sense because the Patriots currently boast one of the bottom 3 offenses in the league scoring the very least amount of points among them. Even with Drake Maye behind center the team is only averaging 17 points per game. However, after a closer look into this it’s clear to me the Patriots have no plans to move on from AVP barring any drastic changes this season.
SPORTS ILLUSTRATED Breer said, "They have done some research over the last few weeks on how to handle a young quarterback. And obviously they failed with Mac Jones from 2021 through 2023. So the Krafts have asked people and done their homework on how the right way to handle a young quarterback is, and how they're going to do that going forward."
Presumably the Patriots have been reaching out to other teams or executives, past and present, for advice.
Per Greg Bedard of the Boston Sports Journal, what Albert Breer was talking about when he exposed the Krafts here for searching outside the organization for offensive help happened weeks ago amidst the team’s six game losing streak. Funny this is a similar sin that Mac Jones once committed that could be argued was the catalyst that sent this whole organization into the downward spiral we they find themselves trying to dig out of. I digress. Maybe there were thoughts about dismissing Alex Van Pelt at the time and maybe it’s still a possibility if the team drastically struggles in the back half of the season. Lets not forget Van Pelt was not exactly their first choice for the job.
ATHLETIC Jerod Mayo’s first few days as the New England Patriots’ head coach were a bit rocky. His biggest task was filling out his coaching staff, and the most important piece was identifying the right offensive coordinator.
But many of Mayo’s top options weren’t interested. Zac Robinson, a former teammate of Mayo’s with the Patriots, took the OC job with the Atlanta Falcons. Nick Caley, a former Patriots assistant, turned down the job to remain in a lesser role with Sean McVay and the Los Angeles Rams.
It took a dozen interviews before New England landed an offensive coordinator, and even then, it didn’t lead to the young hotshot hiring many expected. Enter Alex Van Pelt, 54, a full-time play caller for zero NFL seasons.
Make no mistake, this isn’t to say the Patriots offense has been great, even good. The unit enters Week 11 ranked 30th in the NFL in yards per play, 25th in success rate and 30th in points per game.
Make no mistake, this isn’t to say the Patriots offense has been great, even good. The unit enters Week 11 ranked 30th in the NFL in yards per play, 25th in success rate and 30th in points per game.
“He’s been tremendous,” tight end Hunter Henry said. “I love his scheme, I love his game planning, I love his football mind and how he sees things. It’s been a lot of fun growing in this scheme, growing in this system, and I’ve really enjoyed it.”
Most OC’s who lead their unit to worst in the NFL do not keep their job. This is a fairly unique situation though because of the rookie quarterback. Turmoil in the coaching department is one of the worst things you can do for a young QB. But, you can’t completely dismiss the idea. I’ve personally been calling for the firing of AVP in season for that very reason. If its a decision that is inevitable get it over with and more forward.
BOSTON SPORTS JOURNAL Longtime NFL reporter/insider Albert Breer appeared on Boston Sports Tonight with Michael Felger and Michael Holley and revealed that ownership has been making calls to gauge how to proceed with a young quarterback, especially after having watched the Mac Jones era implode.
When pushed if those calls meant Van Pelt was in trouble, Breer said, "I think that's all under evaluation."
"I think Buffalo is a good example," said Breer. "When Sean McDermott first got there, he went and hired Rick Dennison, who is one of Mike Shanahan's OGs, like one of the guys who was there on the ground floor with Mike Shanahan to put in that offense. It did not work (in Buffalo), and they went and got Brian Daboll in year two to work with Josh Allen. These things happen sometimes after year one or year two. I don't think Alex Van Pelt has done as terrible a job as a lot of people think.
"Because I look at it and I see Drake Maye making fundamental progress, I think that he is a much better quarterback than he was in April and May, more prepared to play in the NFL. But there's a lot of different elements to developing a young quarterback, and I think that they (ownership) want to see around their blind spots."
The biggest question is who are they talking to? Let the speculation run rampant! We will never know the true answer to this question. It’s also a different question than, who could be the next OC of the Patriots. Those are names like Brian Dabol, Chip Lindsey, Shannon Dawson, Nick Caley. For more on potential OC fits click HERE. But, who could they be reaching out to mid season? Imagine a world where it was Belichick? No. I won’t allow that possibility, because it’s impossible. Josh McDaniels? Totally could see that. But, coaches in the middle of the season are not taking time to chit chat about how Johnny Kraft fucked up, here. I’d guess it’s at the ownership level or potentially Management. Guys like Nick Caserio or Scott Pioli. Dave Ziegler even. The Kraft’s have a history of dealing with people they know because they believe they can trust them. Please see Jerod Mayo: Head Coach as reference. It’s just another reason why I don’t see them moving on from Van Pelt. They are not interviewing potential new OC’s on the down low. They are talking to other billionaires or guys on the street.
More likely the Kraft’s may look to bring in additional help at the coaching level with younger offensive minds that can help take Alex Van Pelt’s offensive scheme to a more competitive level in the modern day NFL. Immediatly, Mayo and Maye came out in support of Van Pelt. Even team captain Hunter Henry had glowing remarks. Again, with a young team growing, building chemistry and character you risk alientating them against the organization by blowing out a well liked coach. Even if long term terminating the coach is the best decision for all of them.
BOSTON HERALD — Drake Maye and Jerod Mayo were asked Wednesday morning about how offensive coordinator Alex Van Pelt has been instrumental in the rookie’s success, and both the quarterback and head coach began their answers the exact same way.
“Yeah, he’s been huge,” Maye and Mayo said roughly 13 minutes apart.
Mayo said no one in the Patriots’ organization deserves more credit for Maye’s development than Van Pelt.
Maye has seen Van Pelt as a “confidence booster.”
“You love playing for an offensive coordinator like AVP,” Maye said. “He’s positive, and also at the same time, he’ll coach you hard. He’s done it; he’s played quarterback in this league and at a high level, so he knows what needs to be done and the tasks. He knows it’s a tall task as well, which is pretty – him and T.C. (McCartney) both kind of have the quarterback minds, and Coach (Ben) McAdoo. So, those three all know what it’s like, how hard it is to play quarterback in this league and give a lot of leeway, but at the same time, know what needs to be done.”
Maye was asked Wednesday if he feels like he’s “a lot better” than he was when he was drafted in late April. The quarterback seemed to think it would be boastful to acknowledge that yes, he is.
“So, I think I wouldn’t say better, I’d just say more comfortable. I think a lot of stuff is coming to tie together. I think I’m still a lot of the same player. The same plays that I’ve made in college I’m making today. So, I think just building on, getting more comfortable in this offense and just growing as a young adult.”
At this point you are relying on hope. You hope Van Pelt needs to be a good enough teacher to instill the fundamentals of an NFL system in his young signal caller with the hope that Drake Maye has enough talent to lift an offensive scheme not advanced enough for the modern NFL. The Kraft’s have already made the mistake of hiring the wrong guys to develop their franchise QB. Even if it is considered meddling or undermining their current staff to a degree the best thing they could do is add the correct kind of offensive mind to the coaching ranks. It’s a tight needle to thread, but they’ve done it to themselves. The worst thing they could do it stick with the status quo. As currently constituted as fans we will constantly be left wondering what the true potential of Maye and his cohorts could be. If blowing out AVP is too drastic a measure at this stage, at least be bold and humble enough as a whole to ask for help.