The Taboo Elephant in the Room [Mayo was a bad coach]

[Triumph]

This Felger-esque nonsense is ridiculous. It's complete and total garbage. You just made up a racist and sexist narrative about thing with no evidence. "Timing" of his hire is not evidence - you're a clown for suggesting that.

Idiot

Mayo was hired as NE HC on January 12th, 2024
The final 2024 NFL HOF vote took place on January 17th, 2024
Jerod Mayo was formally announced as NEP HC on ... January 17th, 2024. The final day of HOF voting since you're too stupid to connect the dots.

Look up these FACTS like I did months ago.

The thing about people who spout off racist and sexist narratives is that it usually says all you need to know about thier character... so that's something you need to reconcile with.

Mayo has a history in the organization. He was buddy-buddy with Kraft and Kraft was convinced he'd be a good head coach. Mayo had some opportunities to leave while Kraft saw the writing on the wall with BB and leveraged that into a "coach in waiting role". Glaser has long worked with the Krafts in a variety of roles. Belichick got himself fired for poor performance which opened up promotions/new roles for both, that Kraft felt they were ready for based on his time with them. Mayo's year as head coach and whatever Glaser was going proved that they weren't cut out for the jobs, or at least not now for sure. So Kraft fired them. That's what happened. Whatever racist/sexist bull **** you want to layer into that is a reflection of your own character and how you see the world.

Your name should be HugeDummy.

The last thing you want to do is get in a debate with me on who the racist are in this country.

 

[XLIX]

I've said it time and again:

Mayo just wasn't ready. A total of 5 years experience as a LBers Coach is not even remotely good preparation. Someone needed to step in for his own good.

 

[JoeSixPat]

I have avoided this topic because it’s water under the bridge AND oddly politically charged BUT:

Entering week 7 I feel we now have enough objective AND subjective data to put a nail in the “it wasn’t Mayo’s fault, he got screwed” narrative.

He was possibly WORSE than we thought.

Vrabel has already matched the win total of Mayo’s career 6 games in.

And more damningly, it’s the WAY they’ve done it.

But for one player getting the yips vs Pitt (Mondre), the team on the field is light years ahead of last year, coaching is night and day, hope is restored.

Kraft made one of the absolute worst hiring decisions in NFL history…but has followed it up with a very good one.

I donno - I don't think Kraft WANTED to lose - but I think he also knew that the team needed to rebuild and that means the draft and that means getting some high picks for a year or two.

I think Mayo said he'd be a loyal soldier and do what Kraft wanted, and was told that he'd be given a minimum of 2 seasons - only to be thrown under the bus by Kraft and Wolfe.

I think it was the wrong choice all around - but I think Kraft thinks he made the right choice to tank for a season to get a QB

I also think that the choices a GM makes in any given season will be a deciding factor if a team is trying to lose, without actually TRYING to lose (i.e. there should be MAJOR repercussions for actually throwing a game.)

So that was the environment Mayo was in - all created by Kraft, knowing that whoever came in after Belichick was almost destined to look bad in comparison... who else in the NFL would really have wanted that role? Meanwhile Kraft had been cultivating Mayo for exactly that role for several years prior.

Now, along the way, Mayo said and did some STUPID things - and if there ever WERE a thought that he was the next Championship coach, it left most of us scratching our heads. In the end, Kraft threw Mayo under the bus, cut him loose likely FAR sooner than whatever gentleman's agreement they had, with Mayo now being understandably PO'd in my opinion.

It may also be that Kraft had another coach in mind but that coach simply wasn't available at that point

In that respect, one might even posit that the plan from the start was to tank with Mayo and then grab Vrabel when he became available.

 

[Simpelton]

Yes, agree. But Vrabel had been a head coach. Mayo was nowhere near ready. I guess I need to detail my complaint a little more. The Krafts thought coaching was so easy that someone with Mayo's aura (team captain, smart, corporate) could transition after Belichick. But they did everything wrong you could possibly do. From creating a mutiny inside the team in 2023 by crowning Mayo the heir apparent DURING the season to not understanding that Mayo did not have a network inside NFL coaching. You look back on it and think, what were they thinking? I'd put it a little on the players in the sense that they had just experienced strife between the former coach and new coach, which is something that almost NEVER happens in the NFL, which created an inherent sense of distrust, and a total lack of buy-in.

Now, while that seems like I'm criticizing the players, I'm really saying it was 100% predictable that the whole situation would be interpreted by players as weird and unstable. Because it was.

Correct me if I'm wrong about what you're saying:

You're saying that, knowing that Mayo didn't have a network to draw talent from, the Krafts (Mostly Bob, but Jonathan too) should have leaned on THEIR network to help him set the team up to succeed. Right?

 

[Simpelton]

I will say this for Jarrod Mayo. He wouldn't be the first head coach that got punched hard in the nads the first time he took a gig, and then turned around, learned from his errors, and figured it out over time.

The man's smart and he knows ball. He just wasn't as ready to truly be a leader as he thought he was. He has every chance to turn it around as he gets older and smarter, figure out where he went wrong in New England, and put himself in a better situation for another try.

 

[UGAPatsfan]

This is correct. I'm not sure why posters keep saying they didn't spend money when they spent a **** ton of money on Barmore, Dugger, Rham and Owenu. Then they caved and gave Godsmack more money. Thankfully, Barmore returned and isn't effected by his blood clots, so his contract is now looking like a bargain.

Dugger was by far the worst signing if you follow the timeline. It was very Sonny Weaver Jr. esque.

Dugger ….felt like they got owned by an agent. They were literally bidding against themselves

 

[MrBigglesWorth]

Mayo was hired late and had few pickings on assistants not to mention lack of connections. He didn't do his time to build connections.

 

[MrBigglesWorth]

Wolf still needs to open up to many of these bad wasted draft picks

 

[BUSTAMOVE]

Very good OC and DC can’t handle HC duties
Mayo did not even have that experience
That part of the hiring was on Kraft
But Mayo’s initial bravado and kicking sand on BB lost all my respect
That part was solely on Mayo
Kraft fortunately corrected his mistake and redeemed himself
Mayo on the other hand will always be an outsider

 

[TommyD4207]

Mayo was hired late and had few pickings on assistants not to mention lack of connections. He didn't do his time to build connections.

No he wasn't.

 

[FCB02062]

How is Mayo's failure political? Because he's black? He ****ing sucked as a coach and as a leader of men. His skin color has nothing to do with it. Or are we not allowed to criticize Mayo because he's black?

 

[VrabelJr]

I donno - I don't think Kraft WANTED to lose - but I think he also knew that the team needed to rebuild and that means the draft and that means getting some high picks for a year or two.

I think Mayo said he'd be a loyal soldier and do what Kraft wanted, and was told that he'd be given a minimum of 2 seasons - only to be thrown under the bus by Kraft and Wolfe.

I think it was the wrong choice all around - but I think Kraft thinks he made the right choice to tank for a season to get a QB

I also think that the choices a GM makes in any given season will be a deciding factor if a team is trying to lose, without actually TRYING to lose (i.e. there should be MAJOR repercussions for actually throwing a game.)

So that was the environment Mayo was in - all created by Kraft, knowing that whoever came in after Belichick was almost destined to look bad in comparison... who else in the NFL would really have wanted that role? Meanwhile Kraft had been cultivating Mayo for exactly that role for several years prior.

Now, along the way, Mayo said and did some STUPID things - and if there ever WERE a thought that he was the next Championship coach, it left most of us scratching our heads. In the end, Kraft threw Mayo under the bus, cut him loose likely FAR sooner than whatever gentleman's agreement they had, with Mayo now being understandably PO'd in my opinion.

It may also be that Kraft had another coach in mind but that coach simply wasn't available at that point

In that respect, one might even posit that the plan from the start was to tank with Mayo and then grab Vrabel when he became available.

You’re giving Kraft way too much credit as being some sort of mastermind

 

[TheRainMaker]

Mayo was hired late and had few pickings on assistants not to mention lack of connections. He didn't do his time to build connections.

Not sure what you mean by this as your either blaming Mayo or defending him.

 

[TheRainMaker]

I donno - I don't think Kraft WANTED to lose - but I think he also knew that the team needed to rebuild and that means the draft and that means getting some high picks for a year or two.

I think Mayo said he'd be a loyal soldier and do what Kraft wanted, and was told that he'd be given a minimum of 2 seasons - only to be thrown under the bus by Kraft and Wolfe.

I think it was the wrong choice all around - but I think Kraft thinks he made the right choice to tank for a season to get a QB

I also think that the choices a GM makes in any given season will be a deciding factor if a team is trying to lose, without actually TRYING to lose (i.e. there should be MAJOR repercussions for actually throwing a game.)

So that was the environment Mayo was in - all created by Kraft, knowing that whoever came in after Belichick was almost destined to look bad in comparison... who else in the NFL would really have wanted that role? Meanwhile Kraft had been cultivating Mayo for exactly that role for several years prior.

Now, along the way, Mayo said and did some STUPID things - and if there ever WERE a thought that he was the next Championship coach, it left most of us scratching our heads. In the end, Kraft threw Mayo under the bus, cut him loose likely FAR sooner than whatever gentleman's agreement they had, with Mayo now being understandably PO'd in my opinion.

It may also be that Kraft had another coach in mind but that coach simply wasn't available at that point

In that respect, one might even posit that the plan from the start was to tank with Mayo and then grab Vrabel when he became available.

This has never been Kraft's M.O. and has shown to be more of a reactor. This goes all the way back to the mid to late 90's with the Parcells fiasco.

 

[Tunescribe]

I have avoided this topic because it’s water under the bridge AND oddly politically charged BUT:

Entering week 7 I feel we now have enough objective AND subjective data to put a nail in the “it wasn’t Mayo’s fault, he got screwed” narrative.

He was possibly WORSE than we thought.

Vrabel has already matched the win total of Mayo’s career 6 games in.

And more damningly, it’s the WAY they’ve done it.

But for one player getting the yips vs Pitt (Mondre), the team on the field is light years ahead of last year, coaching is night and day, hope is restored.

Kraft made one of the absolute worst hiring decisions in NFL history…but has followed it up with a very good one.

You could've stopped with water under the bridge. And what's ""taboo" or "politically charged" about it? What you're right about is Kraft redeeming himself after an all-time bad decision, albeit a year late.

I suspected from his disastrous introductory press conference that Mayo would fail spectacularly and said as much. I also stated that hiring him over Vrabel was a mistake, figuring (wrong) at the time that Vrabel was in line after he came here in-season from Tennessee for his Hall of Fame indiction.

Of course, later it came out that Jerod was contractually assured of succeeding BB. But anyone who followed things closely could tell from a fairly early stage that Mayo -- who incidentally never held a coordinator's title or full responsibilities -- was in WAY over his head.

 

[upstater1]

Correct me if I'm wrong about what you're saying:

You're saying that, knowing that Mayo didn't have a network to draw talent from, the Krafts (Mostly Bob, but Jonathan too) should have leaned on THEIR network to help him set the team up to succeed. Right?

What network?

Coaches are coaches, owners are owners. I've yet to see owners who have any real knowledge of football.

I mean, by network I'm referring to formidable coaches. Of course Wolf had passing familiarity with people like Van Pelt and the whole Cleveland crew. But the biggest losses were actually felt on defense where Covington was not nearly the DC that OCD Belichick Jr. was.

This franchise needs a very strong personality as coach. Most of the head coaches in the NFL would not work in New England because of the constant meddling of the Krafts. It has ended badly with 3 different HOF coaches in succession (Parcells, Carroll, Belichick). The Krafts have way too much confidence that they know enough about football to properly assess, first, who will make a good coach, and two, who excels at picking the right players.

We're lucky we have Vrabel and his personnel guy. Things aren't perfect right now, however, because our DC is engaged in on the job training.

 

[upstater1]

How is Mayo's failure political? Because he's black? He ****ing sucked as a coach and as a leader of men. His skin color has nothing to do with it. Or are we not allowed to criticize Mayo because he's black?

??

you're the only one bringing race into it.

The OP meant political as in, the politics of the franchise. The intrigues, the secret maneuvers, etc.

 

[upstater1]

Dugger ….felt like they got owned by an agent. They were literally bidding against themselves

Dugger is really in the last year. Effectively, he'll make $39m over 3 or about $13m per year. This isn't the most expensive contract and it's not crazy to think someone would've been offering him $8m or $9m. The top safeties in the NFL make around $20m a year, and at the time, Dugger fit into the Belichick scheme, which Mayo adopted. Dugger doesn't fit now because it's a new regime. The season prior to his last year of his rookie contract, Dugger was fantastic, Pro Bowl worthy. It's not a stretch to see he was valued for $8 or $9m by another team

 

[Tunescribe]

The OP meant political as in, the politics of the franchise. The intrigues, the secret maneuvers, etc.

Not sure about that. It's quite unclear what he meant by "taboo" and "politically charged," waiting for him to offer an explanation.

 

[FCB02062]

??

you're the only one bringing race into it.

The OP meant political as in, the politics of the franchise. The intrigues, the secret maneuvers, etc.

Did you not see the question mark in my post? Im not a mind reader and can't read the OPs mind....and no, I didn't read through the entire 200+ post or whatever it is thread...and not sure if you paid attention during Mayo's tenure, there was a TON of gatekeeping for Mayo right here on Patsfans due to Mayo's race.