Former Patriots safety discusses Jerod Mayo replacing Bill Belichick

Former New England Patriots safety Duron Harmon played alongside first-year New England head coach Jerod Mayo from 2013 through the 2015 season and thinks Mayo could prove to be an ideal replacement for living legend Bill Belichick.

"At the end of the day, Mayo is gonna have to be Mayo for him to be the best coach he can be for the Patriots," Harmon said during a recent appearance on the "Eye on Foxborough" podcast, as shared by Karen Guregian of MassLive. "And in being Mayo, he provides kind of a stark contrast. I mean, Bill liked to keep the players a little bit on edge, you know, and challenge them ... He was a tough, hard-nosed old-school type coach. Jerod, on the other hand, wants to ease the tension."

Much was made throughout the past 20 years or so about how New England players tolerated "The Patriot Way" preached by Belichick because he guided the club to six Super Bowl championships during his tenure. 

However, Patriots owner Robert Kraft replaced Belichick with Mayo this winter after New England missed the playoffs for a third time across four seasons. Mayo embraced a "warmth before confidence" approach to the job during springtime workouts.

While speaking on ESPN's "NFL Live" program last week, former Patriots quarterback Brian Hoyer explained how current New England players "love" what Mayo offered throughout the offseason. 

Harmon mentioned that individuals in modern NFL locker rooms want "coaches who are a little bit more energetic, a little bit more positive [and] a little bit more about family" over somebody with the personality famously featured by Belichick.

"There’s multiple ways to do it," Harmon added during the podcast. "There’s no right way. There’s no wrong way, but you just have to make sure that it’s the right way for your team. And, for Mayo, I think this is the right way for his team. So I wish him luck and if anybody can do it, he can."

It remains to be seen how much time Mayo will receive to complete a rebuild that's still in its early days. Kraft presumably wants Mayo to improve upon the club's 4-13 record from last season, but things theoretically could get worse for New England before they get better considering the team's lack of overall talent on offense.