Patriots' Jerod Mayo firing can impact their arch-rivals in more ways than one

Even the New England Patriots' wins in 2024 feel like losses. Behind an out-of-nowhere performance from backup QB Joe Milton, the Pats went into Buffalo and beat the Bills on Sunday, nerfing their 2025 NFL Draft position in the process. And then, just an hour or so later, ESPN's Adam Schefter reported that New England had decided to move on from Jerod Mayo after just one season at the helm.

The news doesn't come as a total surprise. As the Patriots tumbled down the standings this season in increasingly comical fashion, rumors began to swirl that ownership and the front office wasn't thrilled with the job Mayo was doing, even allowing for the relative lack of talent on the roster. Sure, Drake Maye seems like the future of the franchise, but the Pats' defense — Mayo's area of expertise — struggled all season, and Mayo's game management abilities came under fire thanks to several close losses.

Still, getting fired after just one season is pretty harsh treatment. The Patriots couldn't have expected to contend this season; is Mayo really all that different now than he was when the team was convinced to give him the job last winter? In reality, it doesn't seem like this move is about Mayo at all — but rather a unique opportunity for New England that wasn't going to come around again.

Patriots firing Jerod Mayo could cost the Jets their shot at Mike Vrabel

Mike Vrabel has been arguably the hottest name on the coaching carousel this side of Ben Johnson over the last couple of weeks, fresh off a year consulting for the Cleveland Browns. The former Tennessee Titans coach has been feted by just about every team potentially in need of a coach in this cycle, from the Las Vegas Raiders to the New York Giants. But one team, in particular, loomed large: the New York Jets, who just had Vrabel in for an interview this past week.

It's easy to understand why New York would be interested in Vrabel, the ultimate culture reset after the Robert Saleh era came apart at the seams. For the Pats, however, it would represent the worst-case scenario, a franchise legend revitalizing a division rival when he would have rather come back home.

New England had a decision to make: Lose its one chance to hire Vrabel, objectively a more qualified candidate to lead the team than Mayo, or remain loyal to the coach it just handed the head job to 12 months ago? Decorum may have pointed toward the latter choice, but decorum has no place in the NFL coaching carousel. The only things that mattered for the Patriots was getting the best man for the job, and keeping him away from their arch rival. If Vrable does land in Foxboro, and he does for the Pats what he did for the Titans, no one will be second-guessing this move.