MassLive Patriots beat reporter Chris Mason answers reader questions in his weekly mailbag each Friday. Here is this week's highlighted question:
Diana Russini said that the others around the league believe the coaching staff is safe, would that change with a bad finish to the season or is it assumed they’re going to be safe until next season? — Conor M.
MASON: I think it’d take a disastrous finish for anything to change in 2025. For the sake of brevity, I’ll keep this discussion to the head coach and two coordinators.
Let’s start with Jerod Mayo, who was hand-picked by Robert Kraft and had a succession clause written into his contract because the Patriots owner felt so strongly about him.
Kraft is essentially letting Mayo learn on the job in his first season. It’s been far from perfect — Rams defensive game plan, wrong OT direction in Tennessee, etc. — but why suffer through those growing pains and not see what Mayo learns by his second season? With a talent-starved roster, rookie quarterback, and 38-year-old first time coach, this was always going to be a rebuilding year. I’d be shocked if Kraft opts to start over.
“(Players) make their biggest jump from year one to year two,” Mayo said earlier this month. “My expectation for me personally as a head coach is to make the biggest jump from year one to year two.”
Beyond that, making Mayo a one-and-done coach would scream organization instability and scare off potential suitors — especially after Kraft felt so strongly about him that he eschewed a coaching search just 10 months ago.
In Alex Van Pelt’s case, I think it’d take a major regression from Drake Maye to make an offensive coordinator change. The rookie’s development is the single most important thing to the future of the franchise, and he’s been getting better every single week.
Why rip the rug out from under him and Van Pelt when it appears they’re growing together? Too many coordinator changes can be hazardous to a young quarterback’s health. Just ask Mac Jones, who got worse every season in Foxborough.
I think it’d take an exceptional external candidate for the Patriots to move on from Van Pelt, and even if somebody like Brian Daboll becomes available, what are the odds that he stays in New England for more than one year if things go well? Slim. I’d bet the Patriots continue to take the long-view here with Van Pelt, even if the Krafts are reportedly calling around.
Lastly, I think DeMarcus Covington has been the least inspiring of the trio this season — I’m still flummoxed by the all-out blitz on the Cooper Kupp touchdown — but he’s in the same boat as Mayo in regards to being a young coach in a new spot for the first time.
These are the growing pains Covington needs to learn from, and the attrition on his side of the ball has been no joke. Lest we forget, the Patriots are without Ja’Whaun Bentley and Jabrill Peppers, Matthew Judon is a distant memory, and Christian Barmore just returned this week. They’ve been without impact players at every level all season.
So barring something unforeseen, I’d bet all three are back on New England’s sideline for Week 1 of the 2025 season.
NOTE: To read this week's entire Patriots mailbag - as well as our back catalogue - click here. If you have questions on the Patriots, NFL, or want to gripe about past answers, email cmason@masslive.com or tweet @bychrismason.
