Mayo opens up about Patriots’ offseason strategy, draft approach

Mayo opens up about Patriots’ offseason strategy, draft approach originally appeared on NBC Sports Boston

Jerod Mayo set the tone right off the bat Monday morning in Orlando.

“Hopefully you guys come out of here with some clarity as far as our strategy is concerned,” the New England Patriots head coach told reporters, including our Tom E. Curran, during the NFL coaches’ breakfast at the Annual League Meeting.

That’s obviously a departure from Mayo’s predecessor, Bill Belichick, who would rather get his teeth pulled than openly discuss strategy. But Mayo has been transparent with the media early in his head coach tenure, and he continued that trend Monday morning by directly answering a wide range of questions about the Patriots’ future.

Here are a few notable topics Mayo hit on during Monday’s media session:

Early impressions of Drake Maye

If the Patriots keep the No. 3 pick in the 2024 NFL Draft, most mock drafts have them selecting UNC quarterback Drake Maye, with USC’s Caleb Williams going No. 1 overall to the Chicago Bears and LSU’s Jayden Daniels going No. 2 to the Washington Commanders.

Maye apparently left a strong impression on Mayo and the Patriots when he met with the team at the NFL Scouting Combine in late February.

“Drake Maye had a fantastic interview at the Combine,” Mayo said. “He brings a lot of energy. You can tell he has that leadership ability.

“And also the exciting part about a guy like Drake Maye is the ceiling. Like there’s really no ceiling with a guy like that.”

Maye isn’t the only quarterback on the Patriots’ radar, however.

Plans for the No. 3 pick and the merits of trading down

Mayo reiterated his message from Sunday night that the Patriots are prioritizing a quarterback in the draft but aren’t set on using the No. 3 pick on a QB.

“We’re open to trading the pick. We’re open to taking a guy there,” Mayo said.

The Patriots head coach added he views as many as five prospects as potential options to be New England’s QB of the future, seemingly lumping…

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Author : NBC Sports Boston

Publish date : 2024-03-25 14:16:20

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