Here’s the full transcript of what New England Patriots head coach Jerod Mayo had to say on Saturday, August 3, 2024:
OPENING STATEMENT:
“Look, happy to be back out here. I think yesterday was a good day for us. Finally got some heat, but the guys did respond well. You got to find out different ways, or figure out different ways to put adversity, and the sun is one of those things. So I thought those guys pushed through. Excited to be back out here in pads, and really, look, we’re close to a game now. We’re less than a week away, so got to get ready to go.”
On if Drake Maye will play in the Patriots’ first preseason game:
“We’re still having those conversations. Once again, look, maybe all the starters will play. I’m not sure at this present time. We’ll see how we do today and how the guys kind of present the following next couple of days. But we’ll have a lot of guys play.”
On thinking the last two days to give Drake Maye and Jacoby Brissett the vast majority of the team reps and the other guys only a couple:
“I mean, we still talk about competition. And once again, I would say it’s about the quality of the reps and those guys earn your reps. And I think that’s how we want to operate.”
On the fact Demario Douglas said the other day he anticipates more attention and how they prepare for that:
“Yeah. Oh, yeah. Look, Pop’s a great player. If he’s getting double-teamed, it’s better for everyone else. So I’m not sure how teams look at him. He’s a good player, and we’ll see how on a game-by-game basis, how they respond.”
On what he does on the practice field and what he does for them offensively:
“Well, first and foremost, it’s just the quickness and the speed. He is a smaller guy, but he’s very elusive. And just his ultimate competitive attitude, I think, really helps the offense go as far as energy is concerned.”
On if he has a tentative plan yet on how he wants to attack the three preseason games in terms of who plays and when you’re going to incorporate starters and backups:
“We’ll have a coordinator meeting later on. I kind of got some of their thoughts so far. I would say it’s even difficult when you practice against, let’s say, the Eagles and then play in the game as well, or how much you want those guys to play. And then really, our last game is on the road, so that’s a dress rehearsal for our road trip. So we’re still in conversation about that. I’ll probably know by the end of the day.”
On if Matthew Judon was in lower pads yesterday, because it looked like he was just wearing sweatpants:
“Judon had everything on, and he participated in every single drill. Team drills, individual drills. He did everything he had to do.”
On the fact they couldn’t really tell:
“Sometimes when they put pants on, you can’t really tell. But I think the shoulder pads give it away.”
On that you couldn’t see if he had leg pads on:
“No, we don’t do uppers. We don’t do uppers. Either we’re full pads or we’re shells.”
On the fact he said the other day the defense will always be ahead of the offense early in camp:
“I kind of spoke too soon because the offense has honestly not challenged the defense on that. Not to cut you off, but the offense the last couple of days, they’ve done well. Whether it’s running a ball, the play-action game, pushing the ball down the field, I think those guys are doing a good job.”
On what the difference has been for them:
“Look, they’re playing with confidence right now. I’m talking about the offense. They’re playing with confidence and getting more comfortable in the scheme. And the defense just has to play better, play with better fundamentals, play with better pad level, play with better, just, overall awareness. And I challenged those guys, and we’ll see how they respond today.”
On the cornerback rotation and his feelings about players behind Christian Gonzalez:
“We feel pretty good at this time. And once again, those guys have to earn a role on this team. And it’s not really just defense. You want your corners to be able to play special teams as well. So the battles will continue. And even with Gonzo, he has to go out here each and every day and push it. I always tell these guys that, ‘Success is rented and not owned, and the rents due every day.’ That applies to Gonzo as well.”
On the fact the interior offensive line has stayed pretty much the same with Mike Onwenu at right guard, and if they’re getting to the point where he feels like if they like that interior, they’ll stick with that:
“That’s more of a question … after the second preseason game, we’ll have a better understanding of how we want that to operate.”
On if guys need to know that and how far in advance he feels they need to know where they’re going to be:
“In my mind, after the second preseason game, it should be set in stone. Not set in stone, but there’ll be some smaller decisions to be made. But after the second preseason game, we’ll know more.”
On the fact with Judon if he has an agreement with him that he’ll continue to practice in pads after he didn’t do that last year amid his contract dispute:
“I expect all of our players, if the dress is full pads, to come out here in full pads. I expect all of our players, if the dress is shells, then to be out here in shells. Like I said, we’re moving past the Judon thing. We’re both in a good place. I think the team’s in a good place, and we’re pushing forward.”
On if they’ll be installing a game plan heading into that first game:
“Honestly, it’s more about who you’re playing against. The first preseason game is a very basic game. It’s all about fundamentals, running, tackling, all those things. That’s the most important thing. We’re not going to game plan against our first preseason game. We just won’t do it. If they want a game plan against us, that’s fine. But we need to be able to go out there and run our basic fundamental calls and run them at a high level.”
On the fact we’ve seen Marte Mapu observing and using a walkie-talkie and if he can explain what Mapu is doing and how that helps:
“Yeah, he needs to know the call. And if you’re not standing by a coach, sometimes you don’t get the call, especially when we’re not signaling. Look, Marte is a very smart individual and still engaged, which I appreciate, and I think his teammates appreciate as well.”
On how he’s seen Mapu fitting in with the safety group:
“Yeah, he’s going to be a big piece of the group. And honestly, as you go throughout the preseason, he’ll play a lot. There’s one for you. He’ll play a lot in the preseason to see what he really has to offer.”
On the running backs behind Rhamondre Stevenson and Antonio Gibson, and what he’s seen from a players like JaMycal Hasty and the other guys behind them:
“Look, Kevin Harris came in, he’s an offseason award winner. He’s done a great job in the weight room, a great job on the football field. But once again, we’ll see when we get to the games. Hasty, he has a unique skill set, a little bit different than the rest of those guys, but he’s been out here making plays as well. We’ll see how it all kind of pans out.”
On during the two-minute drills yesterday, it was a lot of first and second-year receivers out there with the group and what it means to have those young guys out there in a critical situation:
“It was great. And once again, when you talk about adversity, it was a little bit of a, let’s say, a warmer day for those guys. And just to see them push through that, it was very encouraging.”
On Jabrill Peppers saying he wanted to be part of this turnaround and what it means to have someone like that:
“It’s great. And hopefully, these guys can feel the tide turning. And now, in saying that, the expectation is the expectation. And we talk about the North Star, and it’s winning, but you can’t win without good players. And I’m happy to have Pep here and the other players that we’ve resigned that were already on our team before as we continue to build forward. So his energy and toughness, all that stuff, it encompasses what I believe a good defense defensive player, defensive team needs.”
On the events that happened the first week and what it’s been like as a first-time head coach weathering those things:
“It was good. These things happen on every single team, and it’s good to get that experience of dealing with frustrations and contract negotiations, frustrations on play time and things like that. It’s part of the job. Like my mom said, ‘You want to be a head coach, huh?’ I do. But once again, look, it’s a learning experience for me, and I will continue to evolve and just try to be a better coach every day. Just how I expect our players to be better players every day.”
On the fact the last two days have been fairly clean, Judon included, and if he feels like he’s weathered the storm a little bit:
“Yeah, but once again, every day, I had a conversation with Mike Tomlin at the ownership meetings. He was like, ‘Every day is different, and that’s what it is.’ So just got to be ready to adjust. And I talk about mental agility all the time. You have to be able to change on the fly. The opposite is rigidity, which I don’t think I’m a rigid person and willing to learn from other people.”
On Calvin Anderson going down and coming back out, and what was going on there from his perspective:
“Yeah, there’s nothing more important than availability. There’s nothing more important than being out on the practice field. And hat off to that guy for getting back out there. Obviously, it wasn’t a serious thing. And once again, he’s out there competing for a job. ”
On what he’s seen from the last eight practices and how it will affect his practice plans leading up the game and if he’ll change anything based on what he’s seen from the team:
“Well, now, when you start to put games in there, you got to kind of approach a day or two out as a game week. Like I said, it’s a dress rehearsal for us. It’s a dress rehearsal during the game for all the coaches as well, who’s on the headsets and things like that. We’ll still be out here competing to be on the New England Patriots roster, and saying that we have to start getting ready for opponents.”
“All right. Thank you, guys.”
(Editor’s Note: This transcript is done via the available footage and is subject to typos. If you spot something, please take a moment to let me know in the comments below.)
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Ian Logue is a Seacoast native and owner and senior writer for PatsFans.com, an independent media site covering the New England Patriots and has been running this site in one form or another since 1997.
