The New England Patriots have filled their four major coaching roles with head coach Jerod Mayo, offensive coordinator Alex Van Pelt, defensive coordinator DeMarcus Covington and special teams coordinator Jeremy Springer.
There will always be skeptics refusing to let go of the old way of doing things and making room for the possibility of improvement with the new guard in place. Change clearly needed to happen for a Patriots team coming off a 4-13 season and finishing dead last in the AFC East.
No one knows what will come of the new coaching staff. This could be a case of the Patriots knocking it out of the park and creating a staff that leads the team back to prominence, or they might have doomed the team to even further irrelevance with the recent hirings.
Today, we’re passing out grades for the Patriots’ primary coaching hires for the 2024 season:
Head coach: Jerod Mayo
Jerod Mayo truly is the best of both worlds sort of hire for the Patriots.
On one hand, he’s nothing like Bill Belichick, and on the other hand, he’s a former Belichick disciple, who cut his teeth as both a professional football player and coach under the hoodie-wearing legend.
He’s a bit more loose in his demeanor, and he probably isn’t going to operate the team like a yearly military program. One could surmise he’s going to be more of a player’s coach than his predecessor. Whether that translates into wins or not remains to be seen.
There’s a bit of risk involved with this move considering Mayo is a first-time head coach. But owner Robert Kraft believed in him enough to put it in writing that he would be the successor to the Belichick throne in New England. Kraft didn’t become a billionaire by making spur-of-the-moment decisions, and it’s clear he put deep thought into this one.
Mayo is one of the bright, young coaches in the league, who just so happens to know everything there is to know about the Patriots’ roster. It’s easy to see why the team went in this direction.
Grade: B+
Offensive coordinator: Alex Van Pelt
People have drastically underestimated the Alex Van Pelt signing for the Patriots. The veteran offensive coordinator dealt with a revolving door at the quarterback position with the Cleveland Browns throughout the 2023 season.
They started five different quarterbacks, and the team still finished with an 11-6 record and a 12th-ranked scoring offense. Van Pelt would likely still be in Cleveland if quarterback Deshaun Watson wasn’t struggling. In fact, when appearing on The Sports Hub’s Zolak & Bertrand, senior NFL reporter Albert Breer claimed multiple coaches were sad to see Van Pelt go.
“He was the glue of that staff. Kevin, if you know him, he’s a great guy, he’s not the most outgoing guy,” said Breer, via NBC Sports Boston. “His personality is very dry, he’s got a good sense of humor but he’s not this outwardly gregarious guy. Alex was the one that held that staff together. When guys were coming out, when guys were going in, he is a guy who was a unifying force in that building.”
The Patriots could use a unifying force and a great offensive mind like Van Pelt’s in Foxborough as well.
No, it isn’t Josh McDaniels, but considering how poorly the offense has looked over the last two seasons, this was one of the better ways for the Patriots to hit the reboot button, while also keeping an experienced offensive play-caller in the room.
Grade: B
Defensive coordinator: DeMarcus Covington
There was hope that the Patriots could keep the band together with Steve Belichick being promoted as the defensive coordinator to work alongside Jerod Mayo.
But things went in a different direction.
Former Patriots defensive line coach DeMarcus Covington was promoted as the new defensive coordinator, and Belichick was offered the defensive coordinator job for the Washington Huskies.
Covington was likely already on his way up for a major promotion, either for the Patriots or another team. He’s a fast-rising coach that has garnered tremendous respect in the locker room. Patriots defensive lineman Davon Godchaux even went as far as calling Covington a future head coach back in 2022.
“Head coach,” said Godchaux. “He’s so detailed — great head coach one day.”
This could be the first step towards Covington someday achieving that goal. Will Jerod Mayo hand over the play-calling duties immediately, or will this be more of a situation where Mayo calls the plays and Covington has input? That’ll be one of the biggest questions heading into the 2024 season for the first-time NFL coordinator.
Grade: C+
Special teams coordinator: Jeremy Springer
The Patriots reportedly offered the special teams coordinator role to Marquice Williams, but he elected to pass on that offer and stay with the Atlanta Falcons. That allowed former Los Angeles Rams special teams assistant Jeremy Springer to fall into New England’s lap.
Some have snubbed their noses at the hire due to the Rams having one of the league’s worst special teams units in 2023. Granted, Springer didn’t spearhead the coaching effort in that disaster, but he was there along for the ride.
He’s also a first-time coordinator at the NFL level. So the Patriots are rolling the dice in hopes that everything works out. Keep in mind, the unit could potentially be without Matthew Slater, who is still mulling over the possibility of retiring.
It isn’t often that a unit plays as poorly as the Rams did in 2023, and someone ends up getting promoted for it. Such has been the case for Springer, who will have a lot to prove with the Patriots.
Grade: D+
