Jerod Mayo was introduced by Patriots Chairman and CEO Robert Kraft as the 15th head coach in franchise history in a press conference held at Gillette Stadium on Jan. 17, 2024.
Said Mayo after being hired, "Becoming a Patriot has never felt like a job, rather a calling. I learned so much and feel taught by so many. I played alongside perhaps the best special teams player of all time and the best football player to ever play the game, and it doesn't stop there. I also played for the best coach to ever coach the game, and in my opinion the greatest human being to ever own a professional sports franchise."
Mayo was drafted by the Patriots in the first round (10th overall) of the 2008 draft out of Tennessee and spent his entire NFL career in New England before retiring following the 2015 season. Mayo played linebacker and appeared in 103 games during his career, racking up 905 total tackles. He was named captain for seven consecutive seasons (2009-15) and is a 2014 Super Bowl Champion. Mayo made the Pro Bowl after the 2010 and 2012 seasons after leading the league in tackles each season. In 2010, he earned Associated Press first-team All-Pro honors. He led the Patriots in total tackles in each of his first five seasons and became just the second Patriots player to win the Associated Press Defensive Rookie of the Year award.
Mayo becomes the fourth person to be named head coach after playing for the previous coach (Bill Belichick) with the same team since the 1970 merger. The others are Mike Tice of Minnesota (under Dennis Green), Jack Pardee of Washington (under George Allen) and Bart Starr of Green Bay (under Dan Devine).
"Being a Patriots player was always to me bigger than football, and when I retired as a player, it was bittersweet," said Mayo. "The end of my career I endured some injuries and I knew that retiring as a player was not the end of my road in football or with the Patriots. I took some time away from football to both spend more time with my family and work on both business and life skills."
Following his retirement, Mayo served as an executive in finance at Optum as Senior Vice President of Business Development before returning to the Patriots to start his coaching career as inside linebackers coach in 2019. While at Optum from 2016 through 2019, Mayo took the skills and understanding that he mastered in football and transformed himself into a business executive. While at Optum, he worked on consumer solutions with clients and consulted on mergers and acquisitions.
In 2019, Mayo returned to the Patriots when he joined Bill Belichick's staff as the inside linebackers coach. In his five seasons with the Patriots, the defense finished in the top-10 in total defense four times.
Under Mayo's tutelage in his first coaching season, LB Dont'a Hightower earned his second career Pro Bowl nod and the defense finished No. 1 in the NFL in total defense (275.9 yards per game) and scoring (14.1 points allowed per game). Without a defensive coordinator by title in the past five seasons, Mayo's role and responsibilities grew each year. Last season, the defense ranked seventh overall in yards allowed.
"The time came in 2019 to begin the process to attend to unfinished business and new mountains to climb with the Patriots," said Mayo when joining on the coaching staff.
In 2022, the Patriots defense finished the season ranked 8th in yards allowed and tied for second with San Francisco with 30 total takeaways. LB Matthew Judon tallied career highs in sack totals in back-to-back seasons, recording 12½ sacks in 2021 and 15½ in 2022. The 15½ sacks rank third in team history and for a franchise record 102.5 sack yards. Judon earned his fourth straight Pro Bowl invitation and second straight with the Patriots. He also earned PFWA-All-AFC Team honors and was named the Week 5 AFC Defensive Player of the Week.
Josh Uche also recorded career highs in 2022, finishing with 11½ sacks for 49.5 yards. He had six sacks in a three-game span, second most in team history. Uche earned AFC Player of the Week honors in Week 14 after his three-sack performance against Arizona. In 2023, the Patriots defense finished ranked seventh in total defense. The Patriots allowed just 3.3 yards per rush, the lowest in the NFL in 2023 and the lowest in team history since the 1970 merger. The previous low was 3.4 yards per rush by the 1974 team.
Said Mayo on his coaching style, "I would say I'm a huge believer in just developing people, whether it's on the football field, whether it's off the football field, in the media world, in business. My calling is to be a teacher and to develop people and help them see pretty much what they don't want to see but they need to see - that is my calling."
Mayo spent four seasons at Tennessee, starting in 26 of 32 games and recorded 236 total tackles, 6½ sacks and an interception that he returned 34 yards for a touchdown. He served as a co-captain as a senior in 2007 and was an All-American second-team choice and consensus All-Southeastern Conference first-team selection.
Jerod Mayo was born Feb. 23, 1986, in Hampton, Va. His brother, Deron, joined the Patriots organization in 2018 as a strength & conditioning assistant coach. Jerod and his wife, Chantel, have three daughters, Chya, Chyanne and Chylo, and a son, Jerod Jr.
Mayo credits his grandfather, Walter Johnson, for helping give him the discipline to reach success.
"While we didn't have a father for a short period of time in our lives, my grandfather kind of filled that role," said Mayo. "He was a Chief Master Sergent in the Air Force and comes from a military background. He always used to talk about working hard and discipline. It's easy to be motivated. I feel like motivation in itself is fleeting. As soon as you get hit in the mouth or as soon as you run into some adversity, what do you fall back on? That is discipline."
Mayo learned his values and leadership style through the people he met in both football and business.
Said Mayo, "People that influenced my coaching style – we'll start with Bill [Belichick], probably the greatest to ever do it. I learned a lot from him. He's a teacher first and foremost. My manager at Optum, Mike Mateo, learning how to deal with people, different groups of people. Also, my mom – she worked very hard, and my grandfather. Like I said, in the military, discipline, I learned a lot from him as well. Tedy Bruschi, we played the same position. He protected me. The best leaders that I have been around have been able to command a room and get a group of people going after a common goal."
Bruschi saw Mayo develop the skills that helped shape Mayo into a leader.
"The ability to communicate with anyone and make them feel like you are on an equal level, and he can speak on a level that is educated and that is personable," said Bruschi. "When you have those two things, you get people listening to you. They listen to what you say, and it's easier for you to convey what you need from them, or what you want from them on the field, and that is something that I think he is exceptional at."
