A sparsely filled Gillette Stadium echoed with “Fire Mayo” chants in the fourth quarter of the Patriots’ humbling at the hands of the Chargers. The 40-7 blowout at home confined Jerod Mayo’s side to a sixth defeat in a row, leaving the Pats with an abysmal 3-13 record thus far. This was not what Kraft had in mind when he appointed Mayo as the HC, something he claimed he planned five years ago.

Taking over from Belichick after a 4-13 season was not going to be easy. The Pats and Kraft had large were prepared for a bumpy ride with an inexperienced coach at the helm. But it is not only the results that have diminished Mayo’s stock. There have been quite a few questionable decisions along the way, with the December 23 defeat to the Bills the latest example of his ineptitude in key situations.

With his team down two scores and their offense near midfield and a little more than eight minutes remaining, Mayo opted to punt. The team needed two scores to complete what could have been a remarkable comeback against the Bills, but because of Mayo’s punt, they didn’t even get two possessions and ended up losing 21-24. With the latest horror show against the Chargers, is time up for Mayo?

First-year coaches often struggle, but this is the Patriots we’re talking about – they’re not exactly used to being at the bottom of the barrel. Hence, Kraft is faced with a dilemma of whether to Mayo more time to figure things out or hit the reset button. NFL insider Albert Breer thinks the owner might exercise patience.

Speaking on the December 30 episode of the Rich Eisen Show Breer said, “To me, Robert Kraft does not want to fire Jerod Mayo. I don’t think they want to be that franchise that’s acting in that sort of scattershot way.” However, Breer was quick to point out that the availability of former Titans coach Mike Vrabel is something that the Pats may have to consider, given his track record.

Breer’s view seems to differ from that of The Athletic’s Diana Russini. She made the contrary claim on The Herd with Colin Cowherd show, saying that Robert Kraft may consider taking the tough call over Mayo, not only for the team’s sake but to help Jerod Maye realize his potential.

The clouds of doubt still shroud hid future of the Patriots. Notably, Belichick went 5-11 in his first season before a certain Tom Brady was picked by the Patriots in the sixth round of the NFL draft and their history would be changed forever. Perhaps, Mayo needs to find his Brady before it’s too late. He may already have one capable in Maye, but needs to find stability within the team.

Jerod Mayo might bench Drake Maye

One bright spot for the Patriots this year was their rookie QB Drake Maye. He showed resilience and strength even in the games they lost. But the HC is considering a tough decision ahead of the last game in the season against the Bills. When asked if the rookie would play against the Bills, the coach replied, “Everything is in consideration.”

During the week 17 loss against the Chargers, Maye suffered a head injury. And the team is waiting for an update on it. Also, they are already in the last place in the AFC conference. So the team doesn’t want to take any risk ahead of the 2025 offseason.

For the fans, it’s tough to see their team struggling. In the offseason, they would try to sign some better players or make better plans for the next year. That’s all they can do.