Jerod Mayo received game ball, gave Belichick-like answer after first career win as NFL head coach
BOSTON -- Jerod Mayo did not have to wait long to get his first win as an NFL head coach. He put together an excellent game plan for the Patriots in Week 1, and his players executed that plan to notch a 16-10 win over the Bengals in Cincinnati on Sunday.
Mayo became the fifth head coach in Patriots history to win his first game, joining Ron Meyer (1982), Raymond Berry (1984), Dick MacPherson (1991), and Pete Carrol (1997).
Mayo gave a Belichick-like response to his first career win
Mayo won his first game as Patriots head coach in place of the legendary Bill Belichick. He also had a very Belichickian response when talking about his first career victory Sunday afternoon.
"I'm going to enjoy this one for the next couple of hours, but truth be told, this is a 'What have you done for me lately?' type of business," Mayo said at the podium Sunday. "It's time to turn the page and get ready for the next game."
That doesn't mean that Mayo wasn't pumped over the victory on Sunday. But in true Belichick fashion, he also gave the credit to his players for making the plays on the field.
"I think winning as a coach is huge, and once again, not for what it does for me but for what it does for those players," he said. "I can't say enough about the players.
"Without them, I'm nothing," he added. "They knew the plan and they executed. You can have all the mantras you want, but on game day it comes down to execution."
Patriots players heap praise on Jerod Mayo after win over Bengals
Mayo's players, however, heaped the praise on their rookie head coach after the win. Not just for his game plan to pound the ground on offense and keep the Bengals from doing the same on defense, but for his approach throughout the week leading up to the game.
"No one believes in us, but he kept preaching the people in the room are the ones that matter," said Patriots quarterback Jacoby Brissett, who threw for 121 yards on Sunday. "All the things stacked against us, none of that mattered when we got between those white lines. The vision was clear and we came and executed that plan.
"It's hard to win in this league. He played in this league so he understands how hard it is to win in this league, on the road, against a good opponent," added Brissett. "He was ecstatic. Elated. Any word you can think of that means overjoyed. He should be, it's his first one and he got us ready to go."
Patriots running back Rhamondre Stevenson ran wild for much of the day Sunday, rushing for 120 yards and a touchdown off 25 carries in the win. It fell in line with the kind of team Mayo wants the Patriots to be this year.
"He's our leader. Great coach. We're behind him 110 percent," Stevenson said of Mayo. "He gives us the fire to go out there and play hard for him and run through brick walls for him."
Mayo gets Gatorade bath and game ball in Cincinnati
As the seconds ticked off the New England victory at Paycor Stadium, Mayo received a Gatorade bath from defensive linemen Davon Godchaux and Daniel Ekuale. Hugs and high-fives followed, and then Robert Kraft had a gift waiting for his head coach.
Kraft gave Mayo a game ball from Sunday's win, a memento for the 38-year-old to remember the special milestone. Mayo also gave out a game ball of his own, gifting one to executive vice president of player personnel Eliot Wolf.
"It's a special, special moment," Mayo finally admitted.
Mayo credited the Kraft family, his family, and past coaches and teammates for getting to this point in his professional career. But he knows his work is far from done, with a lot of football left to play.
Still, winning a game that saw the Patriots as 8.5-point underdogs ahead of kickoff is nothing to scoff at. The Patriots have been picked to finish in the basement of the NFL for a second straight season, and managed to prove the doubters wrong for one weekend.
Mayo said that nation-wide doubt was not a source of inspiration in the New England locker room.
"Not at all. We try not to hear anything on the outside. I told the guys all week it was all about us, the ones in the building. It's all we got and all we need," he said.
But it's going to be one heck of a plane ride back to New England on Sunday. Mayo is going to soak in this victory and then shift his attention to the Seattle Seahawks, who come to Gillette Stadium for a Week 2 showdown next Sunday.
With the Patriots a surprising 1-0 on the season, the atmosphere should be electric for Mayo's first game as a head coach in front of Patriots fans.
"Hopefully they see what we're trying to build. It takes time, and we're still not where we want to be, but we're heading in the right direction," said Mayo.