Jerod Mayo is feeling the heat in New England right now. But is the Patriots head coach really in danger of losing his job?
Questions about Mayo's future ramped up this week after the Boston Sports Journal's Greg Bedard speculated on 98.5 The Sports Hub's Felger & Mazz that Mayo won't be assured a second season as New England's head coach if the team continues to look like a "dumpster fire."
Yet Patriots Insider Phil Perry reported Wednesday in his Patriots Mailbag that team owner Robert Kraft doesn't intend to fire Mayo any time soon. On Wednesday's edition of Boston Sports Tonight, Perry reiterated that assertion.
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"I think it would have to be the extremist of extreme situations. It would have to be something completely unforeseen," Perry said when co-host Michael Felger asked what it would take for Mayo to lose his job in 2024, as seen in the video player above.
"He's not going anywhere. He's not going anywhere this year. He's not going anywhere after this year, in my opinion. They've made a real commitment to this new regime. The Krafts understood that this was going to take time to turn it around, so they're going to give this regime the time they need to get this thing turned around."
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Kraft named Mayo the Patriots' head coach in January and later admitted he tabbed the former Patriots linebacker to succeed Bill Belichick back in 2019. So, Kraft clearly believes in Mayo, and even the team's rocky 1-6 start won't lead him to part ways with either the head coach or his de facto general manager, executive vice president of player personnel Eliot Wolf.
"I think there's a good chance that both Jerod Mayo and Eliot Wolf are back at the end of this year -- an extremely good chance," Perry added. "I wouldn't put a percentage on it, but again, it would have to be something completely unforeseen for those guys to lose their jobs."
Mayo has had some significant growing pains in his new role. He's sent mixed messages in press conferences and drew criticism for calling his team "soft" after last Sunday's 32-16 loss to the Jacksonville Jaguars in London. He's dealt with some players publicly voicing their frustrations with their teammates and others getting in trouble off the field.
But to some extent, this is the reality for a first-year head coach with a roster devoid of talent that's lost multiple team captains to injuries or other circumstances. And even if the Patriots' record doesn't improve, Perry believes Mayo and Wolf will have the opportunity to get this rebuild back on track.
"I don't know what the record would have to be. I think it would have to be something beyond record, though," Perry said."
"... I really don't think (Mayo is) going anywhere after the year. ... You're talking about after Year 1, completely wiping out this regime? It's just, again, it's not happening."
Check out Perry's full discussion with Felger and co-host Michael Holley below or on YouTube.