Mayo’s Patriots appear happy not to have to play for Belichick anymore

Mayo’s Patriots seem happy to be done with Belichick. Originally appeared on NBC Sports Boston

The power of joy is at its national peak and it appears we have underestimated its impact on the Patriots.

The first priority after watching their shocking win over the Bengals was to determine what we had been missing. Is the offensive line better than we thought? Will the defense simply keep them in every game? Can they thrash opponents with Rhamondre Stevenson because offensive coordinator Alex Van Pelt really knows what he’s doing and Jacoby Brissett won’t mess it up?

All fair explanations, but they miss the bigger picture: Jerod Mayo is not Bill Belichick.

Those of us who thought Belichick’s ouster was overdue based that opinion largely on the roster. Belichick, the personnel man, had lost his way, drafting kickers instead of receivers and guards instead of tackles. The Patriots needed to modernize in today’s speed-racer game.

But even Mayo’s most ardent supporters expected the club to decline on matchday, because we were still talking about the greatest manager of all time who had seen everything in 50 years on the sidelines. Mayo couldn’t just suddenly meet that standard. In fact, he might be an X’s and O’s burden until he found his feet.

Only we forgot the joy.

Clearly, Foxboro didn’t represent the happiest of working environments in Belichick’s final two seasons. Players questioned his decision to let a couple of unqualified friends run the offense, absolutely no one appreciated the way he trashed Mac Jones, and his relentless driving style rang hollow during a four-win season in which Belichick coached not to get blown out as often as he won.

It was a dysfunctional mess, and that was no surprise. After all, we’d already seen him push Hall of Famers Tom Brady and Rob Gronkowski out the door. Fun? Football isn’t fun. It’s not a day off and you do your job and we go to Cincinnati. Fun is for losers. Winners grind.

It had become tiring, and Mayo’s arrival changed everything. He may not be a tight ship, but the players have clearly responded to his leadership. In Week 1, they put forth the kind of effort that once made Belichick complacent. They ran the ball down Cincinnati’s throat, harassed quarterback Joe Burrow with minimal blitzing, and controlled the clock to dominate a game we expected them to lose by two TDs.

The most telling moment came in the final seconds, when Mayo was showered with Gatorade by defensive linemen Daniel Ekuale and Davon Godchaux, grinning broadly. After two decades of Belichick ruling with fear and doling out affection with an eyedropper, the Patriots players seemed genuinely happy for their new head man. It was as if the burden of drudgery had been lifted.

“Without them, I’m nothing. So I made sure they knew that,” Mayo said. “When they cross the white lines, I always talk about empowering the players to go out there and play. I always talk about awareness being the biggest thing and those guys taking ownership. So all credit goes to those guys. They did a great job.”

Afterward, Brissett became emotional as he explained that no coach had ever told him he would win a game. Stevenson praised the staff for taking his advice to ditch zone runs in favor of downhill power. Breakout defensive lineman Keion White, a nuisance all afternoon, said players would “run through a brick wall” for Mayo.

The Patriots actually like their coach now. In today’s NFL, that makes a huge difference, as beloved WWE cartoonist Dan Campbell proves every week in Detroit. Perhaps the Patriots will find that in Mayo they’ve found a similar leader, one who has already avoided the biggest mistake that has befallen most branches of the Belichick coaching tree.

He’s not trying to be Bill, so dominant and secretive and joyless. Mayo is ready to be himself, and at least his players sent a clear message for a week: We’re not going back.