Jerod Mayo highlights 5 coaches who have most to prove in 2024 NFL Draft

There’s already a ton going against Mayo and the Patriots. New England has one of, if not the worst, talent roster in the entire league. That seems to go doubly on the offensive side. So what do Mayo and the Patriots decide to do with their No. 3 overall pick? It’s not as easy as it looks.

Normally, the answer would be an easy one with the Patriots being in a prime spot to select the best available quarterback at No. 3. But again, this team needs a complete roster overhaul offensively, the likes that not many have seen in quite some time. The price would obviously have to be justifiable, but there will be teams inquiring about trading up to get their No. 3 pick. But then you get into what is the right price and can anybody realistically afford it?

This will be the first real moment of Mayo’s tenure with the Patriots. His choices in the 2024 NFL Draft could very well determine his entire future and how much he has one in New England. All he has to do is replace Bill Belichick, arguably the greatest coach in the history of the game.

Kevin O’Connell, Vikings

It will be Year 3 for Kevin O’Connell in Minnesota. A successful 13-4 first year was unfortunately followed by a 7-10 season last year. Most of that was due to quarterback Kirk Cousins tearing his Achilles and missing the rest of the season. Though quarterback dwindled after Cousins left, O’Connell kept his team in playoff contention most of the way, which in turn put them out of the top 10 and maybe out of the possibility of selecting a signal caller in the first round.

O’Connell falls into the predicament a lot of good head coaches do in trying to find their franchise quarterback. He’s proven he can do a lot with a little if need be, but that eventually won’t cut it. Having two first-round draft picks now after a trade with the Houston Texans to take theirs, the Vikings now have the means to trade up and get a quarterback in the 2024 NFL Draft if they want. That is if O’Connell has sent enough flowers to the Patriots front office by now.

O’Connell is by no means on the hot seat, but his seat could start to warm quickly with a second consecutive losing season after not being able to find his franchise quarterback in this year’s draft.

Sean Payton, Broncos

How often have we heard that the Broncos have a plan at quarterback? Denver thought they had it with Russell Wilson until they decided to release him this offseason, even though they’re still having to pay him handsomely. So what’s the plan now? Is it really former New York Jet Zach Wilson?

Bringing in Sean Payton last season changed the dynamic of the entire team and its structure. If not for Payton, who knows, Wilson might still be playing out the remainder of his contract with the Broncos instead of now getting ready to play for the Pittsburgh Steelers. But now that Payton seems to have gotten his way and the Broncos are all in on his vision, he has a lot to prove, starting with the 2024 NFL Draft.

Getting Wilson from the Jets seemed to more or less point to the fact that the Broncos may not have the means to trade up and get the quarterback they desire, so they’re getting someone with some experience to get them through 2024. Whether that holds true will remain to be seen. However, Payton has put himself in a corner here and made this year’s draft one where a lot of his decisions will be emphasized.

Brian Daboll, Giants

Brian Daboll enters the 2024 season with the New York Giants under a lot of pressure, according to Bleacher Report. Most have already forgotten about him helping lead the Giants back to the playoffs in 2022, his first season in New York, because of a tumultuous 2023 season, where nothing went right for the team.

The Giants finished 6-11 last season, which eventually led to some calling for Daboll’s job. Most of that was due to rumored and later proven tension between himself and fellow head coaches, like former defensive coordinator Don “Wink” Martindale. Tensions and a losing record don’t go well together, and that now leaves Daboll having to prove himself all over again in 2024.

That will start with what he and Joe Schoen plan to do in the 2024 NFL Draft, starting with their first-round pick. They are currently set at No. 5 overall. That’s a good spot for selecting one of the top wide receivers available, but maybe not for one of the top quarterbacks. Whatever the decision, Daboll has to find a player(s) in this year’s draft that can more or less save his job.

Antonio Pierce, Raiders

Another year and another head coach for the Raiders in their war room. This time it will be Antonio Pierce leading the way, who won over the locker room after Josh McDaniels was fired midseason last year. Pierce, like a lot of these coaches on this list, has a lot to prove, but perhaps even more so with this franchise.

The Raiders have had more questions than answers over the last two decades with their team. Bad luck, bad management, and less than ideal ownership under Mark Davis have paved the way for their lack of success. Pierce, in what will be his first head coaching job at either the professional or collegiate level, now has to overcome all that, starting with the draft.

We’ll see how long the love fest lasts in Las Vegas with Pierce, who has to make some of his first real decision-making in the 2024 NFL Draft. Las Vegas, picking at No. 13, needs to find a quarterback like a lot of others.