New England Patriots fans along with individuals such as NESN's Adam London criticized first-year Patriots head coach Jerod Mayo after Mayo elected to kick an extra point and send Sunday's game against the Tennessee Titans to overtime instead of going for two and the win following a highlight-reel touchdown pass tossed by rookie quarterback Drake Maye.
Mayo addressed that decision during a Monday morning Zoom call with reporters that occurred less than 24 hours after New England fell to 2-7 via Sunday's 20-17 loss at Nissan Stadium.
"You go back, earlier in the season, we went for two, we didn’t get it, you get criticized," Mayo explained, as shared by Karen Guregian of MassLive. "...So I’m always going to do what I think is best for the team. And I think we can talk about analytics and all of those things, which we do use those things. But at the same time, there’s a flow to the game, and as the head coach, ultimately, the decision and the consequence is on me."
There are multiple reasons outsiders believe playing for the win with no time left in regulation would've been "best" for a Patriots side that's in the early days of a rebuild and could feature veteran players looking for reasons to stay motivated amid a losing season.
The Tennessee defense was likely emotionally and physically drained after it gave up the last-second touchdown. Additionally, history shows that players almost always want to play for the win in those types of scenarios.
Mayo possibly letting some of his players down is noteworthy considering it was said earlier this fall that the New England locker room was "teetering on mutiny" as the coach continued to play veteran Jacoby Brissett over Maye. That was before Mayo said he felt New England was "a soft football team" after a defeat.
Mayo reportedly is not "assured of a second season" as New England head coach.
"We always stay ahead of the game, and that conversation happened long before the 12-second play," Mayo said during a Monday appearance on Boston sports radio station WEEI about the decision to kick the extra point. "Again, I thought that was the best thing to do for our team. And honestly, either way, unless you execute the play, you’ll be criticized. Like we go for two, we don’t get it a couple games ago. This time, we kick the extra point. I felt good. I felt like that was the right thing to do."
As of Monday afternoon, DraftKings Sportsbook listed the Patriots as 6.5-point underdogs for this coming Sunday's game at the 4-4 Chicago Bears. One wonders what the line would be if New England was entering that contest with a 3-6 record.
