FOXBOROUGH, Mass. — Coach Jarod Mayo admitted he made a mistake when asked about his offensive play-calling following the New England Patriots’ 30-17 loss to the Arizona Cardinals on Sunday. With coordinator Alex Van Pelt.
The key part of the game came in the third quarter when the Patriots were stopped on third-and-1 at the Cardinals’ 4-yard line. On both plays, the Patriots utilized a traditional handoff on a running play, which led to Mayo being asked if he had considered making a sneak call on quarterback Drake Maye.
“You said it. I didn’t.” Mayo answered.
Mayo later responded that he was responsible for all decisions, but his initial comments could have been seen as disdainful of first-year playcaller Van Pelt.
Mayo further addressed his comments in a post-match video conference on Monday.
“That didn’t mean anything,” Mayo said. “It was more of a defensive response. I tried to make that clear with follow-up questions. [Sunday]Because ultimately, all decisions are mine. … I didn’t want to go down the rabbit hole trying to explain it all.”
Mayo also said in a weekly radio interview on sports radio WEEI: “I shouldn’t have done that. Like I told the players, I’m still learning how those things work.”
Mayo made similar mistakes in a rough early season with the Patriots, who went 3-11 and struggled near the end of the regular season.
Immediately after the Patriots’ loss to the Jaguars in London on October 20, Mayo said they were a “soft football team overall,” but made it clear the next day that they were “playing soft.”
Before that, Mayo said in a radio interview shortly after being hired last January that the team was ready to “burn some cash” to bring in talented players. He later called it a “rookie mistake” and made it clear that the Patriots would spend wisely.
Those mistakes, along with the team’s shaky play on the field, contributed to a disappointing first year after owner Robert Kraft fired Bill Belichick after 24 seasons at the helm.
During Sunday’s loss to the Cardinals, CBS cameras showed Kraft and team president Jonathan Kraft several times, with the latter appearing frustrated with the pace of the offense at one point in the second quarter and making speed-up gestures with his hands and fingers. work.
As the season began, Robert Kraft preached patience to Mayo, 38, the second-youngest coach in the NFL behind the Seahawks’ Mike McDonald. Kraft said one of the biggest traits he saw from Mayo, who played as a linebacker for the team from 2008 to 2015 and served as linebackers coach from 2019 to 2023, was his ability to connect with and manage young players.
Kraft predicted before the season began that they would “probably go through some tough times,” referring in part to the need for more time to stock the squad with talent. At the same time, Kraft predicted that this season “will be a huge step forward and lays the foundation for the future.”
Kraft has not commented publicly on Mayo since the season began.
