Jerod Mayo reacts to big-time upset win in head coaching debut
Here’s what New England Patriots head coach Jerod Mayo had to say after pulling off an upset win over the Cincinnati Bengals in his first game at the helm.
Nobody gained more from the New England Patriots’ stunning upset of the Cincinnati Bengals than their head coach, Jerod Mayo.
Off to an unexpected 1-0 start after holding on for a 16-10 win in Cincinnati, after the Pats entered Sunday as 8-point underdogs, the team showered Mayo with Gatorade to celebrate his debut. The Patriots came into the game with the less talented roster on paper, especially on offense, but proved to be the better-coached team in all three phases of the game en route to the upset.
Credit is certainly due to the players, most notably on defense, as they held the Bengals to 224 net yards of offense and 4-of-11 on third downs, and even made a stop on one fourth-down play. But across the board, they came into this game prepared, and mostly played disciplined football while avoiding turnovers and showing sound situational awareness. That’s coaching. That’s Mayo.
MORE… Patriots Ups & Downs: Who stood out in an upset win over the Bengals?
Mayo acknowledged that the game wasn’t perfect (“We still left a lot of plays out there”), but did his best to keep the focus on the players, rather than his own accomplishments.
“My message to the players – they gave me the Gatorade shower and things like that – but without them, I’m nothing, and I made sure they knew that,” Mayo said after the game. “They cross the white lines. I always talk about empowering the players to go out there and play. I always talk about awareness really being the No. 1 thing, and those guys taking ownership.
“All the praise goes to those guys and they did a great job.”
About that word, “awareness.” The Patriots typically showed excellent situational awareness, and awareness in general, in the Bill Belichick era, and based on Sunday’s win in Cincy, that will continue under Mayo. It showed up in key moments of the game, both good and bad. Jonathan Jones’ hard tackle behind the line to gain on a fourth-and-2 attempt stood out. So did Hunter Henry’s ability to knock the ball loose from Bengals safety Gino Stone, preventing a potential interception.
Well-coached teams mask their own deficiencies and avoid costly mistakes. Henry saved Brissett from one on that near-interception, where it appeared the quarterback was trying to make a throwaway. But Brissett mostly did a good job to keep the ball out of danger without taking unnecessary sacks, which was a huge help for a beleaguered left tackle spot. Brissett won’t make a ton of explosive plays, but he won’t be much of a negative, either.
All in all, it came out as a no-turnover game for the Patriots, who won that battle 2-0, plus the turnover on downs. They played fast, hit hard, and tackled well on defense. They executed strikingly well on special teams, after that unit had a few down years under Belichick. They showed a lot of the hallmarks of a tough, well-coached team, which, if they can sustain it over the course of the season, could help them win a couple more games than expected.
“It was a great job by [Mayo] getting us ready all week,” said center David Andrews, who shared a hearty embrace with Mayo before the coach took the podium. “All the coaches had a great plan. Obviously a lot of familiarity with our offensive coaches and Cincinnati. So, I thought we had a great plan and we executed that plan.”
Just speculating, here, but Mayo is being praised for his communication with the players, and it’s a sign that he’s taking a different approach than Belichick did – perhaps a better approach for today’s modern NFL athletes.
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“The way he’s really just communicated to us and came to us and leaned on us as individuals, getting feedback from us, having it be a back-and-forth relationship, has been huge,” said safety Kyle Dugger. “I can’t speak for everybody, but I know that’s meant a lot to me, and we’ve been really receptive to that. So, yeah, it’s meant a lot.”
Communication, preparation, awareness, toughness. The qualities that can keep a rebuilding team more competitive than expected. The hallmarks of a team led by a good coach.
Mayo just might be the coach the Patriots needed.
Matt Dolloff is a writer and digital content producer for 98.5 The Sports Hub. Read all of his articles here.
Patriots Ups & Downs: Who stood out in an upset win over the Bengals?
UP: LB Ja’Whaun Bentley
Bentley was all over the field in his first game captaining the defense under new coordinator DeMarcus Covington. He logged a team-high 12 tackles, and also generated a half-sack, as he was often shooting gaps to bring the pressure on third downs. The Pats defense was humming for most of the game, and it’s no coincidence that Bentley was heavily involved in that.
Sep 8, 2024; Cincinnati, Ohio, USA; Cincinnati Bengals running back Zack Moss (31) runs with the ball against New England Patriots linebacker Ja’Whaun Bentley (8) and safety Kyle Dugger (23) in the second half at Paycor Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Katie Stratman-Imagn Images
DOWN: LT Vederian Lowe
Lowe isn’t as much of a “down” as Okorafor, as he came into the game as essentially an emergency backup. But it turned out that Lowe had to check into the game in the first quarter. He committed a false start during his first series and gave up a fair amount of pressure, but quarterback Jacoby Brissett handled it well. Despite the thrill of victory, left tackle remains a big concern for the Patriots going forward.
Next Patriots Ups & Downs comes after they take on the Seattle Seahawks in their 2024 home opener at Gillette Stadium.
