PATRIOTS HEAD COACH JEROD MAYO
PRESS CONFERENCE
August 28, 2024
JM: Good afternoon. The last couple days have been pretty difficult as far as cut down day is concerned. It's tough on the players; it's tough on their families. It's also tough on the coaches and the scouting department. We all understand the business part of it. It's still very fluid as far as the practice squad and our roster as a whole. But at the same time, I told the players privately that I'm very thankful for their professionalism and understanding of the business part. I want to make sure I express it here publicly as well. Those guys just – they handled the news like true professionals, and I'm very appreciative of it. That was my first time doing it, but like I said, it was very difficult. We're looking forward to putting the rest of the roster together, the practice squad and then really just looking forward to getting the team ready to go against Cincinnati. This week for us, it's really about just getting the Patriots better. Then next week, it'll be about preparing for a game.
Q: Jerod, can you give us any information on the starting quarterback?
JM: Yeah, so I know everyone wants to know that. I'm going to talk to the individual players tomorrow. I'm going to have a team meeting tomorrow and then I'll get it to you guys.
Q: So, does that assume you've made a decision, you just haven't communicated it yet to them?
JM: Yes, we've made a decision, just haven't communicated. Honestly, I want those guys to hear it first from me before they hear it from someone else.
Q: Why can't it be done this morning?
JM: Because I'd rather do it tomorrow. Today, look, this morning was a hectic day. We were still working through the roster and things like that. As much as you want to have squad meetings, sometimes the time just doesn't permit that.
Q: Jerod, you mentioned there have been a lot of tough decisions, family considerations and that sort of thing. Is there any decision specifically that was the most difficult as you looked at it and said, 'Alright, I'm keeping seven wide receivers, I'm keeping seven, whatever it is,' anything that kind of like stuck out to you?
JM: There are a few of those discussions. In saying that, we feel pretty good where we are as of today. Now, once again, it's very fluid. So, you'll still see transactions continue to happen – not just from our team, we're not unique to the situation – but across the league. You look across the league, there have been teams that carry 12 defensive linemen. I don't know what that means, but once again, the transactions don't end today, they'll continue. I can't give you a specific position, though.
Q: Jerod, you talk about collaboration and being on the same page. How many people are involved with the decision to name the quarterback? How many people are in the room setting specifically?
JM: Really, if you want to talk about the process, Alex [Van Pelt], myself, we just have those conversations, but he gets input from his coaches as well. Ultimately, it's my decision to make.
Q: Jerod, looking at the waiver wire, it looks like you claimed two tackles on the offense. Just what happened Sunday, just kind of your thoughts on where you're at, what you want from the offensive line going forward?
JM: Yeah, I mean, I think it's very clear. We have to improve as a whole. We have to improve up front. We felt like we did that with claiming those players.
Q: Jerod, since we won't get to talk to you tomorrow, just when it came to making that decision, when was it made on the starting quarterback?
JM: I mean, it's hard to nail down a particular date. If you want me to, I'll say yesterday. I'm not sure what that date is. I just know I feel like I'm doing what's best for the team and the decision that I've made.
Q: Was it a long process of conversation between you and Alex? You mentioned that you guys were kind of at lockstep a couple of weeks ago. Did it remain that way?
JM: Yeah, it remains that way. Once again, you have to have those candid conversations. You go back and forth; you weight things differently. When it's all said and done, you just want to make sure you're doing what's best for the team and what's best for this organization.
Q: Have you guys made a determination of who the starting five offensive linemen will be?
JM: Look, we're still working through that. We just have to make sure we have our roster complete before we even make that decision.
Q: I'm curious what you made of Jacoby Brissett's comment on the radio where he said he still believes he's the QB1 for the team.
JM: Yeah, I think all the players, not just quarterbacks, they have to have that confidence that they should be starters. So, I'm not going to dig too far into that. That's his opinion, and we all have one.
Q: Do you feel like you have to – when you tell the team who's going to be the starting quarterback – do you have to explain it to them, do you think, or do you just make that announcement, that's it and it is what it is?
JM: Look, they've gone through the process as well. They've gone through the spring with these players. They've gone through training camp with these players. I'm sure they all have an opinion on who they think should be the starting quarterback, but I don't think I have to explain it to anyone else. It's my decision. Look, if it doesn't work, blame me, blame me. I would say one thing, I think it's important to remember what's good for the team today may not be good for the team weeks down the line. So, I think the challenge is you want to win every single game now, but also we're trying to build something special here in New England. So that to me, that was a challenge.
Q: The designation with [Christian] Barmore. Does that mean you're confident he will return at some point, or is that just leaving open the possibility?
JM: That was just leaving open the possibility. Once again, look, we want Barmore to be healthy, and when he's healthy, he'll be out there.
Q: Did Sunday's game, the performance of the offensive line and just the offense in general, did that give you second thoughts about where to go with the quarterback position?
JM: I think some of that stuff is being overblown. I would say we averaged 5 yards a carry, it was 1 sack and 2 quarterback hits. I mean, if you were to say that was the stat line, you would be okay with that. Now in saying that, we're still just trying to get better. We're trying to get better at not only that starting five that we're talking about, but also just on the practice squad. That's how we look at the practice squad as well. These guys aren't here on our practice squad just to take reps during practice. No, we look at it from a developmental standpoint where all of these guys need to be ready to play. I think it would be naive for us to say going to that first game – where really no one has played four quarters of football – to think that guys won't have to rotate in there at times, no matter what the position, would be just not right, in my opinion.
Q: Specifically, to the left tackle position, we've seen a bunch of guys rotate through there, as you guys said before, looking for the right combination. Vederian's [Lowe] been in and out of the lineup, we saw Chuks [Chukwuma Okorafor] in there the other night. Any clarity there?
JM: Vederian right now, he's dealing with a little something. We'll see when he's healthy. We'll see when he gets back out there what that looks like. I think there is clarity as far as Week 1. Once again, I know everyone's focused on Week 1, but I think you have to look out the front windshield at times, like, 'How does this evolve over time?'
Q: About Sidy [Sow] on that, about the injury and stuff to Sidy the other night. Does that look like he dodged a significant –
JM: That's how it looks. That's how it looks right now.
Q: I wanted to ask you about [Bailey] Zappe. What went into the decision to keep Joe Milton on the roster over Zappe? Then, as a separate question, what's your reaction now seeing that he signed with the Kansas City Chiefs practice squad?
JM: Yeah, one thing I'll say about Zappe, look, he has been the ultimate professional. Even before I took this role, we've had a good relationship, and I'm always going to root for a guy like Zappe. He always had a great attitude, even though things weren't probably ideal for him personally. In saying that, we think that these three quarterbacks have a chance to be better than what Zappe displayed.
Q: Jerod, you talked a lot about competition, competition, competition at all the positions, competition at quarterback. You talked about players overtaking each other to win a competition. I guess what I'm asking you is, are there instances where someone might've outplayed another, but might not start?
JM: I think the important thing for me is the full body of work. So, when I say competition, it's not just one day or one game: it's everything. Like I said earlier, there's different weights to those things that they do particularly well or not well. So, to me, it's the full body of work, the spring, the summer, and all of those things.
Q: Coach, what can you tell us about the players you claimed and what you see their roles potentially being on the team?
JM: We'll see. We'll see. You watch some of the film, you watch all of these guys, and we were in a very unique situation being third on the waiver wire. We felt like we improved our team, offensively, defensively and special teams. When you talk about – you get a linebacker that can fly down the field like that, or you get some offensive linemen that could possibly develop into good players. I mean, we have to take swings at these players, and hopefully, when they get here, they'll fall in line, contribute to our team this year and in the future.
Q: With the four waiver players, obviously, now you have to release four other players. Has that been communicated to those players yet?
JM: We had a conversation with the players that we removed.
Q: What went into your thinking of keeping seven wide receivers initially?
JM: Yeah, initially, all those guys have a particular set of skills, and we're still just trying to figure out who the best guys are. Once again, I would say this is the initial cut down. It won't probably look like this in the next few days. It'll be different. So, the roster's still fluid. There'll be hundreds of transactions here over the next couple of days, and there may be another player that we're like, 'Wow, we should take a swing at this guy.'
Q: What do you like about Joey Slye and what he's done?
JM: Yeah, I thought those guys competed. Chad [Ryland] competed, Slye competed. I would say, I think it was clear, at least to me, that Slye had a better camp.
Q: Based on kicks made?
JM: It's very easy. It's very easy with kickers. It's a lot easier with kickers than it is offensive linemen. It's like, 'Alright, 95%, 88%.' So, it was very easy in that regard.
Q: Jerod, the four players you did claim, do you expect to have them either today or tomorrow in the facility?
JM: Yeah, that's the expectation. I'm not sure exactly the rules as far as when you can actually get them in meetings and on the field, but that's my expectation.
Q: With the four guys who have to be left off the roster now, is anyone going on an injured reserve list?
JM: Well, today was a very difficult day because when you think about it, these guys were very close to making the roster. We want them to be a part of our program and what we're trying to build for the future. So, there are different avenues, whether it's what you're talking about or practice squad, those are things that are still in discussion.
Q: Jerod, going back to the quarterbacks, is Eliot [Wolf] involved in that conversation at all? Is Eliot weighing in?
JM: He [Eliot Wolf] definitely weighs in. I would say, once again, it's my decision to make. A lot of people have opinions on how they think about things, and I've lost quite a bit of sleep trying to think about this stuff as well. I would ultimately put it on me.
Q: Jerod, you have nine rookies and nine second-year players. You and Eliot [Wolf] talked a lot about drafting and developing. How important is it that?
JM: It's very important to have players that are young and you can see the upside and the high ceilings. Going back to what I said earlier, the balance is wanting to win now and also developing for the future. That's my job. That's the coaches' job. It's on us.
Q: With practice today and not telling them [the players] yet who's going to be the starter, how does that change today's practice as far as first-team, second-team reps go?
JM: It doesn't really change too much. I would say both of those quarterbacks have been in there to start off periods or not start off periods. I think these guys are professional football players, and they're able to block out the noise, and I appreciate that.
Q: You didn't have much background, I don't think, at all, with Jacoby. What have you learned about him?
JM: I heard from a lot of players that Jacoby was a great leader, very selfless and all about the team. He's proven those things to be true. He does a good job for us in the meeting rooms. He does a good job helping out all the quarterbacks as far as from a scheme standpoint. He's done a good job.
Q: When you talk about him [Jacoby Brissett] being a leader, he's the first one to run out into the field whenever a good play is made by one of the rookies, whether it's a quarterback or a wide receiver. What's it like to see a guy running out on the field [congratulating his teammates]?
JM: To me, it's great. You should be excited. We talk about the law of abundance versus the law of scarcity. We talk about that all the time, to be happy for your teammates. A lot goes into any touchdown or any good play. There's a lot that goes into that, and I know one person probably gets the praise, but it's a group effort.
