Photo by Maddie Meyer/Getty Images An assistant coach under Bill Belichick for the last five years, Mayo will now become his successor. Update 1/12/2024: Jerod Mayo announced as new Patriots head coach The New England Patriots have made it official. Jerod Mayo has been hired as their new head coach, succeeding Bill Belichick less than 24 hours after he and the team announced a mutual parting of the ways. A new era in New England.Congratulations, Head Coach Jerod Mayo! pic.twitter.com/Aj87oTu2S2— New England Patriots (@Patriots) January 12, 2024 The Patriots will officially introduce Mayo as their new head coach next Wednesday, Jan. 17, at noon. Original story 1/12/2024: Jerod Mayo hired as new Patriots head coach, per report The New England Patriots have found their next head coach. Jerod Mayo, who served as the team’s linebackers coach and a de facto co-defensive coordinator for the last five seasons, will lead the franchise moving forward. Adam Schefter of ESPN was the first to report the move. Mayo, 37, brings experience as both a player and coach to the table. A first-round draft pick by the Patriots in 2008, he spent eight seasons with the club as a linebacker and appeared in a combined 111 regular season and playoff games. The one-time Super Bowl winner retired in 2016, but he returned three years later as an assistant coach. Despite officially being listed as linebackers coach, Mayo’s role within the Patriots defense was a prominent one. For the last few seasons, he served as the quasi leader on that side of the ball alongside fellow assistant Steve Belichick. Now, Mayo is being handed the keys to the kingdom. The move itself does not come as a surprise. As previously reported, the Patriots had contractually agreed to making him the successor of long-time head coach Bill Belichick — a move that allowed them to forgo a lengthy recruiting process. With Belichick and the Patriots announcing their decision to mutually part ways earlier this month, the path was clear for that succession plan to be implemented. The 14th non-interim head coach in franchise history, and the fourth since owner Robert Kraft acquired the club in 1994, Mayo now will have some massive shoes to fill. In their 24 years under Belichick, the Patriots won six Super Bowls and 17 division titles while establishing themself as the first and so far only true dynasty of the salary cap era. With the head coach position now filled, the Patriots can turn their attention to the second vacancy created when the all-powerful Belichick departed: general manager. Several internal and external candidates might be on the franchise’s radar to take that job. As opposed to the coaching job, the GM position is expected to be filled through a traditional hiring process. This also means that the Patriots need to satisfy the NFL’s so-called Rooney Rule about interviewing at least two external minority candidates.
Source: https://www.patspulpit.com/2024/1/12/24 ... -belichick
