Sure sounds like Jerod Mayo could be fired as Patriots coach earlier than expected

This wasn't supposed to be an easy season for head coach Jerod Mayo. He was already taking over Bill Belichick as the team's sideliine boss and taking over a New England Patriots team whose roster is well, near the bottom of the league in terms of talent. But thus far, the season has gone worse than expected.

After pulling off an upset win over the Cincinnati Bengals in Week 1, the Patriots have lost six consecutive games, including this past weekend in London against the Jacksonville Jaguars. Some instances that took place include Mayo calling the team "soft" to the media to being critical of rookie wide receiver Ja'Lynn Polk publicly. it's not an ideal start for a team that was expected to finish near the bottom of the league standings.

The Boston Sports Journal's Greg Bedard appeared on 98.5 The Sports Hub on Tuesday, and suggested that there's a slim chance Mayo could be shown the door if he's unable to turn things around.

“I think that, how do I put this … I think that there were some thoughts during the summer that there were questions going on around the building about whether this was the right thing for the program,” Bedard said, h/t Boston.com. “There was some second-guessing, second thoughts about it. And I’ll tell you, it’s my opinion from talking to people that I don’t think Jerod Mayo is assured of a second season if this is a complete dumpster fire.

“Now I don’t think that’s likely, but considering where we are in Week 7, they are weeks away from even a bye week trying to reset, not that that’s going to do any good with this coaching staff. … But I think it would be wise for Jerod to get on top of things. If that means him going into the defense meeting room, taking over play calling, something. If this is the way the rest of the season is going to go, a lot of people are going to get fired.”

Jerod Mayo may not be guaranteed a second season if Patriots continue to struggle

Bedard stresses that it's highly unlikely that the Patriots would move on from Mayo so quickly, given that he's been Belichick's successor in waiting for years. However, Bedard says that if things get even worse, people will get fired.

Mayo has put attention on himself recently, specifically from publicly calling the Patriots "a soft team,"after their loss to the Jaguars. Belichick even criticized Mayo for his "soft team" comments, saying that this was the same run defense that he had last year, and it ranked near the top of the league.

There is still so much season left for Mayo to turn things around. Mayo made the decision a couple of weeks ago to start Drake Maye at quarterback, and the third-overall pick has shown promise. Maybe there could be further changes, like Bedard hints at.

But if things get worse, Bedard said there's a chance, albeit a slim chance, Mayo could be out after one year.