TRANSCRIPT: Jerod Mayo Press Conference 8/26
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Here’s the full transcript of New England Patriots head coach Jerod Mayo’s press conference for Monday August 26, 2024:
On the quote of “Drake has outplayed Jacoby” and his context of that:
“Yeah, I would say it just starts in practice and also in the game where Drake has played better. Now, in saying that, everyone wants to know who the starter is going to be. I think there are multiple factors that kind of have to go into this decision. One is the total body of work, whether we’re talking about the spring or the entirety of training camp. And now I also say oftentimes we forget about just the overall experience that a guy like Jacoby has, which will also be weighted in the decision that we have to make here in the near future. But I’m happy with the way those guys are battling it out. And hopefully, over the next couple of days, we can name a starter and get the season rolling.”
On when that started to turn in his view:
“I don’t have just a certain time, but I will say it’s… I would say there’s a combination. Well, really, it’s one thing is just Drake becoming more comfortable with the scheme and more comfortable with the players around him. So he’s done a good job with that. I can’t remember a certain point, though, Mike [Reiss], Sorry.”
On the fact he said ‘we’ve all seen rookie quarterbacks thrown to the wolves too early,’ and if that’s just in reference to playing before they’re ready or if it’s a situation where the offensive line can’t protect them, or something else:
“I think every situation is unique because I don’t want to fall into this narrative fallacy or anything like that because you have seen rookie quarterbacks go out there and perform at a high level. I don’t know how the story ends with Drake’s rookie season, but all possibilities are open, and we’ll see what happens as far as who we name and starter here in the near future.”
On with roster cuts coming up, if there has been a decision made whether Kendrick Bourne, Sione Takitaki, and Cole Strange will begin the season on PUP:
“Yeah, there have been those decisions. I’d rather just wait to get those to you in whole because there have been decisions on a few players, just not all of them.”
[there was a glitch in the video feed of the press conference here where a question/response may be missing … ]
On the quarterback, he mentioned that if Jacoby is the choice, it could be based upon experience and how he determines the right time for Maye to get that experience:
“When I spoke about experience, I just wanted to make sure that you guys had transparency as far as the different factors that go into making this decision. It’s no secret that Jacoby has been in the league for a long time. And at the same time, I would say, Drake has been performing well here over the last few weeks. So, I just wanted to make sure that you guys knew the different factors that go into naming a starting quarterback.”
On how he’ll go about determining the right time for Drake if it’s not right now:
“That’s something to think about going forward. It could be a lack of performance on the offense as a whole. It could be that… it could be injury, it could be so many different things. And that’s why it’s hard right now to get through all of those different scenarios where if Jacoby was to start when Drake would be ready to get in the game and things like that. So it’s a very, I don’t want to say a unique situation, but it’s a case within itself where I just don’t know at this current time.”
On the offensive line group we saw last night, other than Nick Leverett being in for David Andrews and if that’s the group he’d like to continue over the next two weeks before you get to Cincinnati, and where things stand on that unit:
“We still have some time to figure out what the best combination is. I would say those guys, pre-snap penalties aside, there were definitely times where that unit out there did a pretty good job for the quarterback, and also, especially in the run game. Anytime you average over five yards a carry, it’s a good day in the run game. Now, in saying that, I’m not sure what the exact combination looks like, but we got in at four o’clock this morning and still kind of cranking through the film, but we’ll have a group ready to go for Cincy.”
On roster cuts, if they’ll start that process today or do it tomorrow:
“That’s a conversation I’m going to have with Eliot [Wolf]. We spoke a little bit about it last night, how we wanted to approach it. We’re both rookies in the game, and it’ll probably start sometime here soon.”
On the offensive line, if they’d consider trying Cole Strange out at center when he’s ready to come back:
“Yeah, that was always a possibility. When we drafted Cole was that he did have that flex to be able to go in there and snap. In saying that, I’m not sure when Cole will be ready to go. That’s for the medical professionals and Cole to decide. But if he’s healthy, he’ll definitely get some of those opportunities.”
On what about him makes him potentially intriguing option at center since there were a lot of evaluators before the draft who thought he could play center in the pros:
“Yeah, I would say his overall athleticism. I mean, he’s one of those guys that even though he’s a bigger guy, he can move and he can move bodies. So he’s a very athletic offensive lineman, in my opinion.”
On the fact we’ve heard he and Eliot Wolf repeatedly point to having the number three waiver claim coming up, and if they expect to be active on the trade market in the next 36 hours or so, or if they’re more just good with having the high waiver claim there:
“I don’t want to overshoot anything as far as the waiver wire. We’re always looking for ways to improve the roster. I would say between Eliot and myself, we’re on the same page, whether it’s through trades or waiver wire or whatever else it is, getting the guy off the street. We’re just always in the mindset of, ‘How do we get this roster better and how do we continue to improve as a team going forward?'”
On if there have been any intriguing trade offers or anything over the last couple of days:
“That’s an Eliot question. He only brings me the ones that are pretty important.”
On the overall experience in Jacoby’s longevity in the league and for context on that, if that’s related to seeing a variety of schemes, playing in adverse conditions on the road, and what goes into the importance of that experience and longevity:
“I would say all of the above, Bob [Socci]. Whether it’s a road game in a tough environment, whether just going out there leading teams to victory, those are all things that are important. And once again, I just wanted to be very transparent about just the different, let’s call it, critical factors that have to go into this decision going forward on them in a starting quarterback.”
On the kicking situation and what does he want in a place kicker:
“Yeah, we just want someone that’s steady, someone that can make just all the field goals. So give me 100% kicker. Give me someone who can kick the ball through the uprights 100% of the time. But that competition has been going on all training camp. It’s definitely … anytime you have the ability to score points or a player on your team that can score points, this is an important spot. This league, it’s all about… It comes down to the wire a lot of the times, and you got to have a kicker that you can trust and depend on.”
On the fact Okorafor was called three times for the illegal alignment. I understand national TV game, point of emphasis, official who’s known to throw a lot of flags, and whether he was not listening, if it was the coaching, if there was there a breakdown there, if there was a temporary brain fart:
“What I would say ultimately … I would say the most frustrating thing for me is if a referee or an umpire tells you, he warns you multiple times, really all the tackles, well, both tackles, they warn you multiple times that you’re too far back, and then they throw the flag a few times. We just have to do business as business is being done. It’s move up. I mean, there’s no one else to blame. It’s pretty clear when you watch it on film, you have to break the center’s hip. And that was the most disheartening part for me as a coach, and it was definitely a learning experience for me as well, where I just got to not have to be tougher on those things here going forward. But if you want to blame someone for that, you can blame me for that one.”
On if Chukwuma Okorafor has shown he’s willing to take that coaching or willing to listen:
“Yeah, he’s absolutely willing to listen. I would say it’s just one of those things where you’ve been doing something a certain way and you’re in the middle of the game, they ask you to change it up, we have to have that mental agility to be able to do that. I would say last night, we were very rigid in our thought, and it was unfortunate, but it was a learning experience not only for those guys up front, but also for myself.”
On the fact they had six penalties in the first game and then just one the next week, and now it tripled from that first week and how he addresses that for the whole team and set the tone to get them back on track:
“It goes back to, let’s do business as being done. You can’t win until you keep from losing. Quite frankly, we’re not good enough as a team to continually go backwards. We always have to win the hidden yardage game. We need to always win the penalty battle. And you could throw turnovers in there as well. That’s just something that I’m going to harp on, and hopefully it gets better here in the near future.”
(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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