Patriots fire coach after just one year
The Associated Press
FOXBOROUGH, Mass. — The New England Patriots fired coach Jerod Mayo on Sunday after one season, beginning another reboot for the franchise just a year after it parted with longtime coach Bill Belichick.
Owner Robert Kraft announced the firing in a statement shortly after New England closed its 4-13 season with a 23-16 win over the Buffalo Bills.
“After the game I informed Jerod Mayo that he will not be returning as the head coach of the New England Patriots in 2025,” Kraft said. “Unfortunately, the trajectory of our team’s performances throughout the season did not ascend as I had hoped.”
Kraft was set to discuss the move in a news conference today.
A former Patriots linebacker who worked as an assistant under Belichick, Mayo started the season with a strong endorsement from Kraft. But alongside a coaching staff that featured offensive coordinator Alex Van Pelt and first-time defensive coordinator DeMarcus Covington, he struggled to get the most out of a young roster that included rookie quarterback Drake Maye.
The Patriots opened the season with a win at Cincinnati before losing their next six games. They won two of their next three but then closed the season by losing six of seven, missing the playoffs for the third consecutive season. Belichick was 4-13 in his final season in 2023 to cap a 24-year run in New England that included six Super Bowl titles.
Mayo played eight seasons with New England and won a Super Bowl during the 2014 season.
Packers wounded
GREEN BAY, Wis. — Green Bay Packers quarterback Jordan Love says he lost feeling in his throwing hand before leaving the team’s regular-season finale against the Chicago Bears.
But he added that his injury shouldnlt impact his availability for the playoffs. Packers coach Matt LaFleur says Love could have returned to the Bears game if necessary.
The Packers weren’t as optimistic about wide receiver Christian Watson. Watson was carted into the locker room after hurting his right knee on a non-contact injury during the same second-quarter series in which Love got hurt.
Browns moving on
BEREA, Ohio — The Cleveland Browns quickly began trying to fix a brutal, broken 2024 season.
There’s no shortage of items needing repair.
Hours after finishing with a loss at Baltimore in the finale of a season that was expected to carry into the playoffs, coach Kevin Stefanski fired offensive coordinator Ken Dorsey and offensive line coach Andy Dickerson.
Those were the initial moves in what will be another busy winter as Cleveland crawls from the wreckage of the franchise’s 18th double-digit loss season since 1999.