TRANSCRIPT: Boston Herald’s Andrew Callahan on 98.5 Talking About the Future of the Patriots Coaches
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Here’s the full transcript of Boston Herald Patriots beat writer Andrew Callahan during his appearance on 98.5 The Sports Hub’s Toucher & Hardy on Monday:
FT: All right, very good. Andrew Callahan, there is a lot of consternation over this loss against Indianapolis. In the long term, losing games like this, because obviously, this season is not about this season so much as it is in the future of the franchise – what are your feelings on how much these losses mean for the future of the team, coaching staff? What are you gleaning from all this?
“Yeah, I don’t I think you can take any one game and push it into the future and say, ‘Oh, this is going to be some giant moment that we all look back on, and you knew either Jerod Mayo didn’t have it or Drake Mayo was the quarterback’, It’s a collection of games. What you find out about your team, whether you’re a contender or pretender, whatever the Patriots are, is who you are under pressure. Right now, they’re losing these games, even though they’re outgaining the Colts by 200 yards and win the turnover battle because they’re losing in the pressure spots, not just the end of game drive there, which involves clock management, it involves how prepared you are as a defense, but also in the red zone.:
“This did not come down to a 20-play drive. If you include the two-point conversion, had they gotten one more touchdown, then the did field goals, and instead of go 2-of-6 inside the red zone. To me, what that says over the course of a season is, ‘Okay, do we have the right coaches?’ Because there are specific coaches in charge of some of the red zone work. Then, when it comes to the defense and playing under pressure, what are we doing in practice? What are we doing in meetings that doesn’t have us steeled for those moments? To me, that’s what you can take from this season. What do we need to change, but not one particular game?”
FT: If you won any, the slim margin of victory, listen to the scores from last week. These are just scores. I’m cherry-picking, but there’s a lot. 24-19, 26-23, 21-14, 23-20, 26-21, 25-24, 23-22, 17-13. I mean, I’ve left out three games. I mean, those are all one-score games. So much of the NFL, and you’re seeing it with a team like Kansas City, so much of the NFL is knowing how to win and not choking in those situations. Kansas City, with another quarterback and another coach, just for the final possessions of the game, might have a reverse record, or certainly a losing record. It’s just not choking and not giving games up. You see teams do it all the time.
RH: And the Patriots are what, Andrew? Two and five in one-score games?
“Now, let’s say this, though, because it’s such a short season. Over a baseball season, everyone’s around 500 in one-run games, right? Unless you absolutely suck. There’s luck involved. Hunter Henry having that ball ricochet off his hands, falling backwards at the one-yard line, three feet from a touchdown, into a Colts’ defender’s hands, its mostly just bad luck. In the same way, it was good luck when you go back to the opener and they had that pick at the one-yard line in Cincinnati, which should have been a touchdown for the Bengals. So it does cut both ways. There’s randomness in here, which is often why you see teams with bad records in one-score games one season often have that flip the next.”
Okay, but there is that… But I don’t think it’s a coincidence that Kansas City is winning these close games.
“No, I’m just saying it’s both.”
FT: No, no, no. What I’m saying is, though, how much of that can be learned? In the fact that they’re not doing it now, does that concern you for the future with this coaching staff?
“Not yet, because I think we’re going to see changes to this coaching staff within the first week or two after the season. This is me reading tea leaves. Also a comment that Jerod Mayo made yesterday that I don’t think got a whole lot of pub when someone asked him, ‘Hey, what are you doing during the bye week?’ I was headlong in the film, and Doug [Kyed] very graciously handles a lot of the press conference and radio stuff for us on Mondays. But he said, ‘I’m going to get away, and I’m going to think about these conversations and decisions that come up on us real fast in the offseason.’ You guys know free agency, it’s not until March. The draft is not until April. What happens the first week after the season are coaching changes. And everyone makes a big deal with the head coaches. I don’t think Jerod Mayo is going anywhere and shouldn’t. But coordinators, assistants, and you already have two teams, the Bears and Jets, who go, ‘Well, my boss is gone. Why would I expect to be here next season?’ Probably making the calls.”
FT: The self-scouting, as you know, in the bye week, these teams self-scout, and there might be some decisions that … some flaws that they’re seeing throughout the season so far that can be attributed. Who do you think is most likely to be replaced? Or what changes do you think are most likely, in your opinion?
“I want to underscore this is just speculation, and this isn’t honestly unique to the Patriots, right? If you’re looking at any team close enough and be like, ‘What are the positions that are underperforming relative to the talent? Or more importantly, to rebuild, who’s not developing?’ Patriots took two receivers in the first four rounds, and they haven’t had a catch between them in weeks. Javon Baker plays four snaps. I would look at the receivers. Tyler Hughes is that coach. The offensive line, another position. Jerod Mayo said multiple times, frustrated by the offensive line, lack of continuity. And some of that is injuries. It’s just bad luck for Scott Peters, who’s also a rookie offensive line coach. But that’s the most important position on staff after the coordinators because you’re dealing with more players and basically half of the offense. So we don’t pay attention to them except for when they screw up. But every coaching staff is looking for a good offensive line coach. Scott Peters once hailed as an excellent assistant offensive line coach. I think there are questions about him as a lead guy.”
JW: How much of this is the structure that was put into place when the season started? First, year head coach, first-year defensive coordinator, Alex Van Pelt, not a ton of experience calling offensive plays, first year, special coach goes first year, offensive line coach? How much of that is the people above them?
“Yeah, it’s a good question, John, because I think the other element, and we remember when they were building that staff, A) Jerod didn’t have a network, so they leaned heavily on Eliot Wolf. They also had to take their time. So there were candidates on the market, not just the coordinator level, but position coaches that were going left and right. Some of them don’t have interest. You can’t hire a guy and force him to play or work in your building if he doesn’t want to be there. But I do think It was the inexperience that Jerod had inhibited him from building the staff that he wanted because he was learning on the fly. That’s why Alex Van Pelt was the 12th out of 12 candidates interviewed and then finally hired.”
RH: See, the thing with the offense, though, when you’re talking about, because I hear Alex Van Pelt’s name get mentioned a lot, and you didn’t mention him here, but whether it’s the offensive line coordinator or the receiver’s coach, offense hasn’t necessarily been the issue here.
“Not lately.”
No, it’s more about the defense, and you’ve got this defensive-minded head coach. You got the defense, which personnel-wise, which was supposed to be the strong point of this team going into the season. You look at the number of points they’re scoring and how they’re scoring them. And with the personnel they’ve got, That’s actually about right. And the offensive line, for as bad as it is personnel-wise, there have been games when they played better than anyone, at least I thought they would. So I look at it and say, ‘Defensively, these guys should be way better.’ They should have been able to get a couple of key stops on Sunday in order to win that football game. It’s not as fun to look at, Fred, but I think that’s something that has to be looked at.
“It’s totally fair. One quick note on that, the defensive staff is much smaller. You can identify who’s screwing up more easily. I think if you’re Jerod Mayo, you just know them better because you work with guys like Mike Pellegrino and Brian Belichick and Demarcus Covington last year. The offensive staff is big and it’s new.”
FT: You guys were talking about the defense and the relationship between Mayo and the defensive coordinator and all those things and how that might be a difficult change to make given their relationship. But when you look at this roster as a whole, you and John were talking about it during the break. What percentage of this roster do you think is here in two seasons? The current roster.
“It’s a great question. Not one I’ve thought about before…”
FT: Approximately…
“Right, right, right. Not trying to be exact. This is something I was thinking about more than a month ago. And I think the answer is probably somewhere between 12 and 20 % because you look at, obviously, Drake Maye. Rhamondre Stevenson is under contract, but I think after next season could be an easy out, and he’s an older running back. Probably one or two of the receivers, pick whichever one you want.
JW: Barmore.
Barmore, certainly. Keion White could be, but then he’ll hit free agency. Kyle Dugger may or may not still be around. Certainly, Christian Gonzalez. I don’t think there’s a reason why they wouldn’t just give him a blank check and say, ‘Please stay, please stay, please stay.’ And then another guy or two. They overturned 40 % of their roster from the end of last season to the end of training camp this year. And you’re still looking and going, ‘Where are the pieces?’ And that’s what this season was about. ‘Foundation.’ Mayo told us right before training camp started and then said it last week again, ‘We’re trying to find out who we have and who we can move forward with.'”
FT: And the results worse or better than you anticipated? Not in terms of record or team performance, but in terms of individual player performance.
“It’s worse. I’m glad you made the qualifier because everyone was like, ‘Oh, they’re three and 10. You’re one of a rebuild.’ You’re totally right. Million % right. The issue is the lack of development, or let’s just talk about the defense. This defense, A) has gotten worse as the season goes on. Say what you will about the worst Patriots teams in general, their defense got better as the season went along. They’re bottom five by DBOA, bottom seven by EPA, and they’re still allowing 23 points per game. So the offense is what it was, but that’s getting better. And it’s not just Drake Maye, though he’s getting better and had his best game yet last Sunday. The defense’s complete collapse was something I don’t think anyone saw.”
FT: And that’s where the issue of the coordinator comes in, because what you wanted to see this season is an evolution, a positive evolution. The biggest thing is Drake Maye, and we were talking about it again off air, Drake Maye’s… Just share your thoughts. I mean, he’s better than you expected, correct?
“Yeah, he’s a stud. And you sound like the beat reporter who’s got one pen in one hand and pompoms in the other, he’s only played eight games. I get it, but I counted five throws on Sunday, rewatching the film yesterday, where he had a completion for a first down, and the ball is leaving his hand either before or as the receiver is making his break. These are anticipatory NFL throws that made a difference yesterday that kept their offense alive. Forget the scrambling, forget the arm talent. Like, this was, ‘I’m going to live within 15 yards of line scrimage, and I’m going to kill you.’ And that’s exactly what they did. He is not only just a natural, not just talented, but he’s growing in ways that some quarterbacks who stick around the league for 10 years don’t make that many types of throws in one game.”
FT: Yeah, and if you watch games just on a Sunday, because the Patriots are at one o’clock on Sunday, so you have your options. If you flip around, I mean, Maye stands out. He just does. I don’t know how many Patriots fans stick around or flip around or have the package or whatever. But if you watch other games, Maye is different. Maye is better. Maye is better than Richardson, and Richardson was a high pick. I mean, Richardson is a crazy athlete. We’re going to get two points with him. But you’d much rather have Maye. Just look around the league, what the kid can do. And that’s the most important thing I contend finding the quarterback is the most important thing. But then you have a Cincinnati situation where they have Joe Burrow, and now the team’s out of playoff contention, and that’s a coaching issue, but that’s a coach that took them as a Super Bowl. But my contention is I’d rather have the quarterback than the coach first. I can find another coach because I could always pay a guy, right? There’s always a Sean Payton out there that can be wooed to come in and take over a team?
“How would you woo Sean Payton? From the little you know about Sean Payton?”
FT: I would just show him a picture of Nathaniel Hackett and say that you can replace this moron and you can go whatever you want.
“You’re not going to dinner?”
FT: With Sean Payton?
“Sean Payton, yeah.”
Well, I mean, if the man-
“But you’re wooing the man.”
RH: Oh, you’re taking it literally, Andrew.
“No, no, no, no. Come on. I want you to work for me. Just, Fred, the owner of a football team.”
FT: Simple gestures. I mean, just let him know I’m thinking about him. Send him a text here and there.
RH: Have you talked to Sean Payton?
“No, I’ve never spoken to him privately.”
RH: We did one thing in a Super Bowl with him once. Let me tell you something. He’s the one who does the wooing. He does the long eye contact.
FT: He’s a Clinton. Yeah, he’s got that Bush, Clinton, you name it.
JW: Most important person in the room thing.
RH: Obama, Trump thing. They’ve all got it, right? It’s like when his handler is like, tucking at him, and it’s like, ‘it’s time to leave,’ and he gets them to brush away.
“You feel good. You feel important.”
RH: I’m talking with these three here right now.
FT: You know who’s another guy like that? Jerry Rice. I got that impression from him because he followed the Jim Gray interview.
JW: Nice guy.
FT: He was like, ‘Who’s that dickhead?’ That situation. And didn’t have a handler. Salt of the Earth fella. Not really a Clinton type, but I’m going to throw the name Jerry Rice in here. Very impressive guy.
They went off on a tangent after this, but the above was the majority of the interesting insight from a team standpoint. If you want to listen to the full interview, you can view it on YouTube via this link.
The above is also subject to typographical errors. Any issues or questions, please let me know in the comments below.
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The pats won 3 games (so far) when they were predicted to win 4 by the media and Las Vegas. But the mind numbing thing is we’re whining and drowned in non-troversy drama over being 2 and 5 in one score games A whiff of coffee and reality should yield that the pats have hung in on 8 of the 13 games so far. On a team in rebuild and transition to a new coaching regime and offense and with well documented issues on personnel. That’s not bad at all. It’s a win in the prospectus and growth bucket, not… Read more »