Albert Breer joined Zolak & Bertrand to discuss some potential candidates for the Patriots should they chose to bring in new leadership
The New England Patriots are wasting no time ushering in new leadership.
After parting ways with legendary head coach Bill Belichick on Thursday, the Patriots have already named his replacement, hiring linebackers coach Jerod Mayo as their new head coach Friday, our Phil Perry confirmed.
Since Belichick also had final say in personnel decisions, New England also is in the market for a new general manager and already has begun that search, NFL Network's Ian Rapoport reported Friday morning.
Stay in the game with the latest updates on your beloved Boston sports teams! Sign up here for our All Access Daily newsletter.
Who could be in the running for New England's GM job? Rapoport shared the names of five potential candidates with ties to the Patriots' organization:
- Dave Ziegler, former Raiders GM
- Jon Robinson, former Titans GM
- Mike Borgonzi, GM Chiefs assistant GM
- Adam Peters, 49ers assistant GM
- Trey Brown, Bengals senior personnel executive
Sports Illustrated's Albert Breer also believes New England will strongly consider hiring a GM who has some connection to the team.
"I think Mayo gets paired with somebody who has experience here (in New England) -- somebody who's been here before," Breer said recently on 98.5 The Sports Hub's Zolak & Bertrand.
MORE PATRIOTS COVERAGE
Ziegler has the most recent tie to Foxboro; he was the Patriots' director of player personnel in 2021 before joining the Las Vegas Raiders along with Josh McDaniels in 2022. Robinson, Peters and Brown all spent multiple years in the Patriots' front office, while Borgonzi is an Everett, Mass., native who worked at Amherst College and Boston College after playing college football at Brown.
Breer also noted that Brown has a "really good relationship" with Mayo -- Brown worked in the Patriots' scouting department for three seasons (2010 to 2012) while Mayo was on the team -- so he could be a name to watch.
Interestingly, Rapoport didn't mention current Patriots director of scouting Eliot Wolf, who is viewed by some as a potential GM candidate in New England. But unlike at head coach, it sounds like the Patriots will consider a wide range of options before landing on a GM to work with Mayo.
