Adam Schefter 'Leaning' Towards Jerod Mayo Being Fired by Patriots After 1st Season

ESPN insider Adam Schefter placed New England Patriots head coach Jerod Mayo into his "leaning to out" category during Sunday NFL Countdown.

The Patriots are tied for the NFL's second-worst record (3-13) heading into their final game in Mayo's first season at the helm.

Dianna Russini of The Athletic reported Saturday that "there's a sense from those around the league that moves are coming" for New England. Appearing on WEEI, Boston Sports Journal's Mike Giardi pointed to some possible turnover with the coaching staff:

Firing Mayo would nonetheless be a stunning call.

Nobody expected the retired linebacker to immediately make New England a contender. He was replacing one of the greatest coaches in modern history, and Bill Belichick left behind a major rebuild after the team bottomed out and lost 13 games in 2023.

In a similar situation, the Dallas Cowboys went 1-15 in 1989 after Jimmy Johnson replaced the iconic Tom Landy. By 1992, the Cowboys were celebrating the first of three Super Bowls they won over a four-year period.

That Mayo is on shaky ground already, though, speaks to how the concerns go beyond just the Patriots' record.

In a number of facets, the learning curve for the 38-year-old has been much steeper than expected.

Mayo raised some eyebrows when he described rookie Drake Maye as "our second-best quarterback on our roster right now" at a time when the team was still trying to maintain the veneer of an open QB battle. He called the Patriots a "soft football team across the board" in October after their losing streak increased to six games. A month later, it sounded like he was passing the buck when the team's struggles continued.

"Look, once those guys cross the white lines, there's nothing I can do for them," Mayo told reporters after a Week 12 loss to the Miami Dolphins. "There's nothing any coach can do for them once they cross the white line. It's my job to continue to prepare not only them but our coaches to go out here and play better football.

Beyond not grasping the PR aspects of the job, Mayo can't point to many positives on the field beyond Maye, who probably should've had the starting job much earlier than he did. New England is 30th in total offense (290.8 yards) and scoring (16.6 points), and its defense is in the bottom 10 in both categories as well.

NFL Network's Tom Pelissero and Ian Rapoport reported on Dec. 28 that Mayo was expected to return "barring some type of calamity over the final two games of the campaign." Getting blown out 40-7 by the Los Angeles Chargers would arguably qualify as triggering a potentially calamitous sequence of events.