Jerod Mayo Or Mike Vrabel? Debating Potential Bill Belichick Replacements

It’s looking more and more likely that next season will be the first since 1999 that someone other than Bill Belichick is patrolling the Patriots sideline as head coach.

The 2023 season has been the worst of Belichick’s sensational run in New England by a considerable margin. The Patriots might be the worst team in the NFL. If New England gets blown out by the Colts on Sunday in Frankfurt, Germany, the seemingly unthinkable conversation about dismissing Belichick in the middle of the season will get considerably louder.

If Robert Kraft actually is done talking about making changes and finally goes through with it, one of the more fascinating head coaching searches in recent NFL history will get underway. However, is the sweepstakes already limited to just two potential candidates?

Patriots linebackers coach Jerod Mayo was the presumed successor in waiting. Mayo previously turned down opportunities to interview for other jobs, while New England made the unprecedented move of announcing last offseason it was working on a contract extension to keep Mayo around for the long term. Understandably, the assumption was the team assured Mayo he was the next guy once Belichick moved on.

However, as this season has circled the drain, we’re starting to hear more about how New England plans on moving on. One report from The Boston Globe identified Tennessee Titans head coach and former Patriots linebacker Mike Vrabel as Kraft’s dream hire.

Mayo vs. Vrabel is intriguing. With Mayo, there are a lot of unknowns, but that might work in his favor. All he’s known is the Patriots Way, but it would be a fresh start in some ways with this being his first head-coaching gig. The 37-year-old has been a trendy candidate for other jobs in recent years, so he’s clearly respected. On the other hand, we’ve got a pretty good idea that Vrabel is a solid NFL head coach. He won Coach of the Year in 2021 and has been to the playoffs (knocking out Belichick and the Patriots). But he and the Titans haven’t yet been able to break through.

So, who should Patriots fans want as their next head coach? NESN.com’s Mike Cole and Ricky Doyle on this week’s episode of “The Spread,” NESN’s football picks podcast, found themselves in an impromptu debate about which could be the better option for New England moving forward.

Also, if you want to hear the full conversation, click below with the debate really getting going at the 37:30 mark.

Then again, there’s a school of thought that the best answer to this question about Mayo vs. Vrabel is, well, neither of them. The Patriots’ offense seems permanently stuck in 2014, and that’s not a good thing. The sport has evolved since then, and it’s not like New England has Tom Brady pulling the levers out there anymore. There’s a very valid case to be made that the next head coach of the Patriots should be an offensive mastermind who can bring the team into this decade and help revamp that side of the ball.

As for now, though, another meltdown Sunday in Germany on the world stage might give us some more answers. If the Patriots did the previously unthinkable and sent Belichick packing going into the bye week, Mayo might get a chance to prove his mettle.