New England Patriots center David Andrews did not take issue with coach Jerod Mayo’s “white lines” comments.
The coach was responding to a question asking when the blame should be on the players and not the coaches for mistakes made on the field. Mayo indicated that it was the players’ responsibility once they crossed the white lines. He also added that it was his job to continue to prepare them.
His comments were met with plenty of scrutiny on social media. Linebacker Ja’Whaun Bentley defended Mayo in a social media post, and Andrews did the same on an episode of the “Quick Snap Podcast”.
“That’s the truth, though. Coaches can’t play the game. Bill would always say that stuff, too. ‘I can’t play the game for you. I can’t do that.’ And there is some truth to that,” said Andrews. “…There’s going to come points in games as players where something’s going to be unscripted. They’re going to do a new blitz. The offense is going to have a new formation. The coaches can prepare you and teach you all the rules, or whatever your adjustments may be, but you have to execute those.
“I’ve always thought, I’ve never gone into a game really and been like, ‘Man the coaches failed us.’ They work hard. They put in so much time, really it’s always about us. It is about the players.”
It might help matters if the Patriots were winning football games. However, they are currently 3-9 on the season with Andrews’ season-ending injury part of what has been a difficult year for the organization.
It has been a bumpy road for Mayo as a head coach, but when it comes to his post-game comments, two of the most respected players in the locker have chosen to back him publicly.
