Patriots' Jerod Mayo hints he'll handle QBs differently than Bill Belichick

New England Patriots head coach Jerod Mayo indicated while speaking with reporters at the NFL owners meetings on Monday that he'll handle quarterbacks differently after former New England coach Bill Belichick allegedly failed Mac Jones following the 2021 season. 

"Mac Jones came in and had a lot of success early on," Mayo said, as shared by Khari Thompson of Boston.com. "...I would say it was a combination of things that really hindered that growth in the second year. One thing I did learn about that process was as you continue to develop a quarterback, it’s not only the players you put around him but also the coaches you put around this guy. Not only the coaches, but it can go all the way to the ops teams and things like that to support a guy who plays the most important position in sports."

Mayo was serving as the Patriots' linebackers coach when the club made Jones the 15th overall pick of the 2021 NFL Draft, and the signal-caller earned a Pro Bowl nod as a rookie while playing under then-offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels. 

After McDaniels became the Las Vegas Raiders' head coach in January 2022, Jones struggled throughout his second pro season while working with assistants Matt Patricia and Joe Judge. 

New England's hiring of offensive coordinator Bill O'Brien last offseason occurred one year too late to save Jones' tenure with the organization, and the Patriots traded the 25-year-old to the Jacksonville Jaguars in exchange for a 2024 sixth-round pick earlier this month. Meanwhile, Patriots owner Robert Kraft and Belichick "mutually" agreed to part ways in January. 

New England currently possesses the third overall pick in this year's draft and could spend that asset to grab an advertised top-tier quarterback prospect. The Patriots signed veteran Jacoby Brissett in free agency so he could potentially start ahead of a first-year pro this fall. 

"You would want to see success like this as a straight line, but realistically that’s not what it is," Mayo added about the Patriots getting the best out of a quarterback they draft. "It’s like a bunch of ups and downs, and I think just supporting a quarterback is one of the biggest things."

Mayo witnessed what can happen when a club doesn't fully support a young quarterback, as it's been reported that the relationship between Jones and Belichick became fractured during the 2022 campaign. If nothing else, history suggests Mayo won't have a second-year signal-caller play under a defensive-minded coach and a special teams assistant/coordinator.