It was inevitable that the Patriots would face life after Bill. That’s happening this year, with Jerod Mayo taking over for the six-time Super Bowl champion.
So what counts as a successful season for the first-year head coach, who’s also following a legend?
“A successful season, in my eyes, is really about the foundation,” Mayo told reporters on Tuesday. “Have we put together a good foundation of a combination of young and older players to really start competing? It would be great to get up here and say we’re going to win a Super Bowl, but once again, it’s about the process. I tell the guys all the time, it’s about process and progress and moving forward.”
So what does the foundation look like?
“It looks like a winning football team,” Mayo said. “It looks like a tough, smart, dependable football team.”
Few expect the Patriots to win this year. And it’s refreshing to hear Mayo ditch the coachspeak and recognize that there’s plenty of work to be done to get the Patriots back to where they were extremely accustomed to be.