Patriots’ Jerod Mayo Pushes Back On Popular Robert Kraft Narrative

While Bill Belichick was at the helm of the Patriots, he was the deciding factor in draft picks and free agency signings.

After amicably parting with Belichick, the narrative apparently shifted to Robert and Jonathan Kraft making those decisions rather than leaving them to executive Eliot Wolf and head coach Jerod Mayo.

Mayo pushed back on that narrative when he joined NFL Network on the last day of draft weekend.

"It's been very collaborative, and I'll say this, ownership has given us the freedom to really use our expertise," Mayo said. "That's being football coaches. That's being football scouts. I think the entire organization down here has done a really good job coming together and making a decision all together, instead of just one man having to make the final call. It's been a great process."

Mayo was asked point blank if anyone with the name Kraft put their "thumb on the scale" and told Wolf and Mayo to select a quarterback with the third overall pick.

"Not at all. Not at all. They’re businessmen, they love the game of football, but at the same time, they have a lot of things going on," Mayo said. "Eliot and I, as well as Matt Groh and those guys, we just said, ‘We’re going to focus on this team and try to put a good team out there this year.'"

While Wolf ultimately made the final decision, the de facto general manager stressed it would be a collaborative effort, and apparently, it worked out well. New England made eight selections, including two quarterbacks, two wide receivers, a tight end, two offensive linemen, and a cornerback.