Patriots Coach Defends Frustrated Players

New England Patriots head coach Jerod Mayo expressed his thoughts on frustrated players following the team's loss to the Seattle Seahawks.

Sep 15, 2024; Foxborough, Massachusetts, USA; New England Patriots head coach Jerod Mayo watches from the sideline as they take on the Seattle Seahawks at Gillette Stadium. Mandatory Credit: David Butler II-Imagn Images / David Butler II-Imagn Images

The New England Patriots were hit with a bit of a reality check on Sunday afternoon, falling to the Seattle Seahawks in overtime.

The Patriots' defense played well, but their offense was still clearly lacking, particularly in the aerial attack.

As a result, New England wide receiver DeMario Douglas expressed some frustration over his role, and head coach Jerod Mayo completely understands.

“Look, all of those guys in that locker room want to play football,” Mayo said, via Zack Cox of The Boston Herald. “All of those guys in the locker room want to help this team win. And if they’re not frustrated, then that’s an even bigger problem.”

Douglas was not targeted once in the affair, and he logged just two catches on three targets in the Pats' Week 1 win over the Cincinnati Bengals.

This comes one year after Douglas led the Patriots with 79 targets.

Mayo is planning on getting the second-year pass-catcher more touches against the New York Jets on Thursday night.

“We know we can run the ball,” Mayo said. “In saying that, [offensive coordinator Alex Van Pelt] understands that we’ve got to get some of these other players — Pop [Douglas] in particular — involved in the offense, and that’s what we’ll do this Thursday.”

Douglas was a pleasant surprise for New England last season, catching 49 passes for 561 yards. As a result, many expected him to play a prominent role in the Pats' offense this year, but things have not worked out that way thus far.

Of course, that could all change moving forward. There is still plenty of time for Douglas to get going. It will also take some better play on the part of quarterback Jacoby Brissett, who has accumulated just 270 passing yards through the first two weeks of the season.

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