Patriots HC Placed Firmly on Hot Seat

New England Patriots head coach Jerod Mayo has been placed firmly on the hot seat.

Oct 27, 2024; Foxborough, Massachusetts, USA; New England Patriots head coach Jerod Mayo calls a play against the New York Jets during the second half at Gillette Stadium. / Brian Fluharty-Imagn Images

The New England Patriots had a lot of hope that first-year head coach Jerod Mayo could take over from Bill Belichick and be a long-term fixture of the franchise.

Unfortunately, heading into Week 13, there are real concerns that he'll last past his first season.

Mayo has not been great in his new role. He has been way too vocal to the media when criticizing his team and has deflected blame away from himself on multiple occasions.

Those things typically don't go over very well. It has also turned the media against him, which also doesn't bode well for a head coaches longevity with a team.

With that being said, Lou Scataglia of NFL Spin Zone has placed Mayo firmly on the list of head coaches who are on the hot seat heading into the final stretch of the 2024 NFL season.

"The "Patriot Way" was nothing more than the greatness of Tom Brady, as the wheels fell off of this franchise when he left the building, and Mayo has known nothing other than Patriots during his time in and around the NFL. The Pats should consider making a change after this season and bringing in a legitimate coach to bring in the right guys to develop Drake Maye and to stabilize this franchise."

Scataglia makes a good point. The Patriots cannot afford to waste time as they look to build back to being a contender.

New England already has a franchise quarterback in place. Drake Maye has already proven himself to be a huge talent. The team needs to have a strong leader who can help them reach their full potential.

This would be the offseason to make a change as well. There are plenty of elite head coaching opions available.

Mike Vrabel could be one of them, as could Ben Johnson. Outside of those two guys, there are plenty of other coaches that the Patriots could look into.

All of that being said, there is still a good chance that Mayo is brought back for the 2025 season. He's very much deserving of being placed on the hot seat, but it seems very unlikely that New England would fire him after just one year with how high Robert Kraft has been on him.

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