Notes and thoughts on the Patriots and the rest of the NFL on Sunday, January 21.

The New England Patriots will look drastically different in 2024. The organization and long-time head coach Bill Belichick announced that they will go their separate ways moving forward, with former assistant Jerod Mayo taking over for the future first-ballot Hall of Famer.

The Patriots’ coaching changes both atop and further down below remain the biggest story surrounding the team these days. Naturally, they also will be part of this part of our weekly Sunday Patriots Notes.

1. Patriots’ coordinator interviews serve more than one purpose: Jerod Mayo has been quite busy since being announced as New England’s head coach last Friday. As he pointed out in the wake of his official introduction on Wednesday, he is planning to build his coaching staff as quickly as possible — a process that included him holding several interviews for coordinator positions over the last few days.

In total, the Patriots have had seven reported meetings so far. Besides interviewing Tem Lukabu, Christian Parker, Michael Hodges and in-house candidate DeMarcus Covington for defensive coordinator, the team also invited Marquice Williams, Jeremy Springer, and Thomas McGaughey for the special teams coordinator position.

The expectation is that other interviews will follow to address the offensive coordinator position that became open due to Bill O’Brien’s departure for Ohio State.

The primary goal of all those interviews is to fill the open coordinator jobs on Mayo’s staff. However, they do serve more than one purpose: they will also allow the Patriots to get in close contact with coaches who might help fill other spots as position coaches.

This approach is nothing new for New England. Last year, for example, the team interviewed Adrian Klemm for its offensive coordinator position only to later hire him as O-line coach. One of the seven coaches listed above following that same route — coming up short for the originally intended position but later still ending up with the Patriots in a different role — could happen as well.

2. New England hopes for long-term stability with Jerod Mayo as head coach: Time will tell whether or not Jerod Mayo will be a long-term solution at head coach for the Patriots, but the team’s ownership is very much planning him to be. As Robert Kraft pointed out during Mayo’s introductory presser, the goal is to foster a culture of stability.

“In the 30 years that we’ve owned the team, today — so it’s really 31 — this is the third coach that our family has hired. In that period, there have been 244 coaches hired in the NFL, which means an average of roughly eight coaches per team, which means there’s a turnover every three and a half years,” Kraft said.

“We like to get continuity in our company, get the most competent people, and then try to build stability. And so before we just rush and hire people, we want to understand what we have internally.”

Kraft inherited Bill Parcells when he bought the team in 1994, and later hired Pete Carroll for three seasons between 1997 and 1999. In 2000, he brought Bill Belichick aboard who would lead the organization to six championships in his 24 years at the helm.

3. The Patriots’ 2008 draft class has now produced two head coaches: When it comes to on-field performance, the Patriots’ 2008 draft class was a mixed bag. Of the seven picks, only two had a lasting impact impact.

Jerod Mayo, the 10th overall selection that year, proved himself an integral part of the team’s defense for a few seasons before a series of injuries limited his impact. Matthew Slater, meanwhile, developed from fifth-round pick into arguably the best special teams player in NFL history.

What the Patriots did manage to do, however, is select a pair of future NFL head coaches that year. One is Mayo, the other is third-round quarterback Kevin O’Connell, the current HC of the Minnesota Vikings.

4. ‘We’re all better players for having him as our coach,’ says Tom Brady about Bill Belichick: The reactions following Bill Belichick’s departure from New England were a trip down memory lane for fans, media and players alike. The perspective of one person in particular is worth revisiting: long-time Patriots quarterback Tom Brady.

Speaking on his Let’s Go! podcast, Brady reflected upon being coached by Belichick for the entirety of his 20 seasons in New England.

“I think we’re all better players for having him as our coach,” he said. “And I think there was a level of accountability and discipline that he had that maybe we didn’t always want to hear it, but in the end when we reflect back, we’re happy that we did hear it and that we went through it. And I think a lot of coaches are fearful of disciplining players these days because players have social media presence and if they don’t like it or he hurt their feelings they can lash back out. And it becomes a popularity contest between the players and the coaches.

“But I’d say one thing that was great about Coach Belichick, he never had that fear. He was going to tell you what he thought the truth was. Even though we may have, you know, all disagreed a little bit at times to what that truth really was, there was no fear in his mind of correcting. And I think when you grow up coaching a guy like Lawrence Taylor, you realize that as a coach — man, if you’re going to get a your point across, you better come across confident, you better come across prepared.”

Brady went on to gush about Belichick’s work ethic and preparation.

“Everyone saw his work ethic,” he said. “We all knew that it came from a very educated place, too. I respected his work ethic so much because I knew he was combing through every single bit of film every single week to try to put us in a position to succeed. So when someone critiques you, OK I’ll embrace that.”

5. Seven Patriots receive All-Pro votes: Coming off a 4-13 season, the Patriots were among only a handful of teams not to see any of their players voted to the Pro Bowl or the first- or second-team All-Pro roster. That does not mean they received no consideration, though.

In total, seven players received votes for All-Pro:

• ST Brenden Schooler (29)
• ST Matthew Slater (5)
• LB Jahlani Tavai (5)
• DT Christian Barmore (3)
• S Jabrill Peppers (1)
• P Bryce Baringer (1)
• KR Jalen Reagor (1)

Brenden Schooler came closest to making the All-Pro squad, even though Christian Barmore might have been the most deserving overall. Nonetheless, playing on a team with one of the worst records in football hurts any player’s chances of post-season recognition.

6. The contract extension window has opened for several players: Speaking of Brenden Schooler and Christian Barmore, both are now eligible to sign contract extensions with the Patriots. Per NFL rules, teams can lock up players long-term after their third season if they were drafted and their second if they entered the league as rookie free agents.

For Schooler and Barmore, as well as other less likely options such as quarterback Mac Jones and running back Rhamondre Stevenson, this window opened last week.

7. New England’s special teams was better than one would think? The kicking game operation was a weakness for the Patriots in 2023, or so it seemed. A look at the recently-released special teams rankings by veteran analyst Rick Gosselin shows that that assessment might not be accurate: New England, after all, ended up in 13th place.

How come? While field goals (16) and field goal percentage (64%) were a major issue — ranking last in the NFL in both categories — the Patriots also were league-best in punts inside the opponent’s 20-yard line (38) and points scored (12).

There are, of course, countless rankings for all things NFL. However, what makes Gosselin’s different is that they are highly-regarded in the league as well; teams put more stock in them than what other outlets have the offer as far as special teams analysis is concerned.

8. Trent Brown opens up about his challenging 2023 season, and more: The Patriots’ issues at offensive tackles were manifold in 2023, and a big reason for the entire unit’s collapse into one of the worst in football. One player in particular seemed to have a hand in that: veteran left tackle Trent Brown.

Rumors followed the big-bodied OT for much of the season, and he recently cleared the air by talking to Dakota Randall of NESN. The entire conversation is worth reading up on, but here are some key takeaways.

Brown hopes the Patriots improve at treating their in-house talent: “There just needs to be more attention on signing and drafting good players. And also understanding that Foxboro is not a vacation spot. You’ve got to spend some money to get good players, and you’ve got to spend money to keep your good players in-house. And once they’re in-house, you’ve got to treat them with some respect and common decency as a human being.”

Brown doesn’t agree with some business decisions: “If you pay Ted Karras, who played a hell of a season at left guard before he left to go to Cincinnati, I think that solves an issue. I think if you don’t trade Shaq Mason, who’s an All-Pro guard, that solves an issue. I don’t think it was necessary for those moves to be made. And then to not really replace them with guys of their caliber.”

Brown doesn’t think Mac Jones was the problem: “I know people are down on Mac and whatnot, but I don’t think it’s his fault … Mac’s rookie year, took us to the playoffs. He had a good O-line in front of him. He had a quarterback coach. And he had an offensive coordinator that he had a relationship with, could feel comfortable with. Josh [McDaniels] leaves, and we don’t have a career offensive coordinator. We just had somebody [Matt Patricia] who was holding the spot … doing a favor, or something.”

9. Another trip abroad is possible for the Patriots: The NFL recently announced its participants in the 2024 International Series, with the Chicago Bears, Minnesota Vikings and Jacksonville Jaguars all set to play in London, and the Carolina Panthers to host a game in Munich. Of those four teams, two will be on the Patriots’ upcoming schedule.

As a consequence, they are candidates to play both the Jaguars and the Bears internationally, plus whoever will host the first ever game in Brazil this fall. But while a second straight road trip is possible, one has to wonder whether the NFL schedule makers would send the Patriots abroad yet again.

10. Patriots fans see the Jerod Mayo hire positively: After Jerod Mayo was announced as the Patriots’ 15th head coach last week, the SB Nation Reacts survey asked fans to grade the hire. Most of the participants view it in a positive light: while 27 percent graded it as an A, a further 41 gave it a B.

11. Setting up the week ahead: The main item on the Patriots’ schedule this coming week is further building the staff, and answering some key questions. Which coaches will be retained from 2023? Who will still be invited for interviews? Which already-interviewed candidates have earned another chance to present themselves, or even an opportunity for a role on Jerod Mayo’s staff?

Things remain interesting, even with New England watching the playoffs from afar.

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