Robert Kraft Thinks Of Jerod Mayo As Bill Belichick’s Potential ‘Heir Apparent’

Although there are no indications that Belichick will be leaving soon, Patriots owner Robert Kraft would not rule out the potential that Mayo may replace him as the team’s head coach. Although emphasising that the team had “other terrific individuals” available as well, Kraft described Mayo as a “strong contender” for that position in an interview with Judy Battista from this week’s league meetings.

It appears the Patriots are considering former linebacker Jerod Mayo as the head coach’s potential replacement since Bill Belichick’s career in the NFL is coming to an end and numerous of his best coordinators have been stolen away over the years.

Robert Kraft Thinks Of Jerod Mayo As Bill Belichick’s Potential ‘Heir Apparent’

It comes as no surprise that some have questioned whether Jerod Mayo might be considered as a potential replacement for Bill Belichick as the head coach in New England given that he was a longtime player for the Patriots and is back for a fifth season as an assistant coach after declining opportunities to interview with other teams.

“Well, he’s definitely a strong candidate to be the heir apparent, but we have some other good people in our system,” New England owner Robert Kraft told NFL Networkat the NFL Annual Meeting on Monday. “So right now, we have a good head coach, and we’re doing everything we can to support him, and make sure we do everything we can to win.”

The Patriots released a 39-word statement in January, as their offseason got underway early for the second time in three seasons, announcing that they had “begun contract extension conversations” with Mayo in an effort to keep him around “long-term.”

It occurred after a season in which the Patriots went 8-9 and had offensive problems under Matt Patricia and Joe Judge. It was an astonishing amount of information for the infamously secretive team to divulge.

“I think he got put in a difficult position; it was sort of an experiment,” Kraft said of Patricia. “He worked very hard at it. In retrospect, I don’t think it was the right thing. I feel bad for him because he is such a hard worker and he got put in a difficult position.”

Even though he won’t start the third-year quarterback, Bill O’Brien, Belichick’s former offensive coordinator, was brought back to help right the ship and boost Mac Jones’s future growth.

For Kraft, bringing the team back to the playoffs regularly in the post-Belichick era will depend on selecting the proper head coach.

“Very important. I think that’s our objective,” Kraft said. “We’ve gone through four years where we haven’t [won the Super Bowl]. We’ve been spoiled, but after my family, my passion [is] the Patriots football team and winning football games and that’s a great turn-on for me. So last year was tough. I’m a fan first. I sat in the stands for 30, 40 years, dreaming if I ever had a chance, what I would do.

“So we want to get back to winning as best we can.”

“But in the end, this is a business. You either execute and win, or you don’t. That’s where we’re at. I think we’re in a transition phase. I think we’ve made some moves this year, that I personally am comfortable with, and I still believe in Bill.”

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