Jerod Mayo plans to take the lessons he learned from his predecessor and make the Patriots his own.
Mayo was introduced as head coach in New England on Wednesday, his first day in the seat previously occupied by six-time Super Bowl championship coach Bill Belichick.
"For me, I'm not trying to be Bill, I'm not trying to be Bill. I think that Bill is his own man, if you can't tell by now, I'm even a little bit different up here," said Mayo. "But what I will say is, the more I think about the lessons that I've taken from Bill, hard work works, right? Hard work works. And that's what we're all about."
Mayo was drafted by the Patriots and worked as an assistant coach under Belichick. He has never played for or coached any other NFL team.
The Patriots were 4-13 and again finished outside of the playoff picture in the AFC, leading to a "mutual" parting between Belichick and owner Robert Kraft after 24 years and nine Super Bowl appearances.
Mayo, who won a Super Bowl with New England as an inside linebacker, joined the Patriots' coaching staff in 2019. He was quickly promoted to head coach under terms of his contract that named him as the successor to Belichick.
He hinted at changes, some of which will align the Patriots with traditional NFL coaching staff structure to include official titles of defensive coordinator and offensive coordinator. There will be movement on the personnel side, too. The Patriots own the No. 3 pick in the 2024 draft.
Mayo was clear about what he's looking for on his roster and sounds ready to tackle reshaping the offense
"First of all, just the energy, the passion, the leaders on the offensive side of the ball," Mayo said. "I think you have to get that stuff in place, and honestly, as the season starts to roll, well this season when it ends, we start in the weight room. I think the weight room is one of the most important areas in the building to really evaluate the people you have on your team. And one thing we don't want to do is have people who are complainers, or finger-pointing, or things like that."
Belichick could continue coaching and interviewed with the Atlanta Falcons this week.
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