It was barely over 12 months in the past when New England Patriots proprietor Robert Kraft determined to half methods with head coach Jerod Mayo after Mayo went 4-13 in his one season on the job.
Kraft seemingly made the suitable name, because the 2025 Patriots went 14-3 underneath first-year head coach Mike Vrabel earlier than they notched a 16-3 wild-card playoff win over the Los Angeles Chargers on Jan. 11. Nonetheless, Kraft acknowledged throughout the newest version of “The Fast Snap Podcast” that firing Mayo final January was a expensive transfer.
Firing Jerod Mayo was expensive for Robert Kraft
“The one factor that I and my household perceive is that we personal this crew, however it’s not like a conventional enterprise,” Kraft defined, per Darren Hartwell of NBC Sports activities Boston. “I have a look at our household as custodians of a public asset. I am very keen on Jerod, and I’d say that was one of many one or two hardest choices (I’ve needed to make), as a result of to fireplace a man after one 12 months — and by the way in which, it was very costly, as a result of there (was) not solely his contract, however 25 different coaches. It is the worst monetary implications since we have owned the crew.”
Mayo played for the Patriots from 2008-15, and he first joined former head coach Invoice Belichick’s employees as an inside linebackers coach in 2019. That stated, subsequent experiences claimed that Belichick failed to adequately mentor Mayo throughout the 2023 season as Kraft wished when he initially set up a succession plan.
In the long run, the Patriots misplaced 13 of 16 video games underneath Mayo earlier than New England notched a meaningless Week 18 win towards a Buffalo Payments crew that rested starters.
“I am a fan first, and I assumed, ‘I am unable to — this simply is not the suitable scenario,’ and that is on me,” Kraft added about shifting on from Mayo. “Jerod’s an excellent man, however I simply did not wish to undergo a continuation of what occurred. And I actually believed that hiring [Vrabel] gave us an opportunity, rapidly, to place the crew the place it was to go from 4-13 to now 15-3.”
Robert Kraft praises followers for environment throughout playoff win over Chargers
Whereas New England extensive receiver Stefon Diggs stated he felt the group “might have been slightly louder” throughout the crew’s playoff win over the Chargers, others related to the Patriots disagreed with Diggs’ take. Kraft appeared happy by what he heard at Gillette Stadium that night.
“Listening to the followers final Sunday evening, it introduced again to me the early days once we began doing nicely and the vibe within the stadium,” Kraft stated. “And I do not know if you happen to guys might sense it or really feel it the way in which I did Sunday evening, however the crowd was an actual asset to the crew. But additionally the sentiments — and I feel a part of it’s what’s occurred to the franchise the final three, 4 years, in comparison with the 20 years earlier. So, it is fairly cool to be again.”
As of Thursday morning, DraftKings Sportsbook had the Patriots as 3.5-point favorites for his or her house divisional-round playoff recreation versus the Houston Texans this coming Sunday.
