Who is Jerod Mayo, the new New England Patriots head coach? Career, family, salary...

Well, if you were a football fan in the mid-2010s, you surely remember that thrilling January night in 2015 when the New England Patriots took on the Baltimore Ravens in a playoff battle for the ages. It was the kind of game that made you hold your breath, the kind of game where legends are made, and in the heart of that frenzy was Tom Brady, doing what Tom Brady does best—rallying his team to victory. But while Brady and Belichick were weaving their magic on the field, off to the side, another story was quietly unfolding. A story that would come to shape the future of the Patriots in ways no one could’ve imagined.

You see, that night was special not just because of the jaw-dropping plays—the double-pass to Julian Edelman, the picture-perfect touchdown to Brandon LaFell—but also because it marked the beginning of Jerod Mayo’s unexpected journey into coaching. Mayo, a stalwart linebacker for the Patriots, had seen his season cut short by injury just months earlier. But instead of drifting to the background, he became a vital presence on the sidelines, tablet in hand, helping his teammates read the game and adjust on the fly. It was during these moments that the first seeds of Mayo’s coaching career were planted.

“In 2014, when he got hurt, I remember being in the Baltimore game. He’s just coming up to us non-stop with the Surface [tablet] showing us what’s going on in the game, how Baltimore was kind of doing some things against us in the run game,” recalled Devin McCourty. Mayo wasn’t just keeping busy; he was laying the groundwork for what would become his second act in football—a career that would eventually see him rise to the peak of the sport as the head coach of the New England Patriots.

Fast forward nine years, and here we are. Jerod Mayo, at just 37 years old, stands at the helm of one of the NFL’s most legendary franchises. When Patriots Chairman and CEO Robert Kraft introduced him as the team’s 15th head coach, there wasn’t a shred of doubt in the room. The organization hadn’t even bothered to interview another candidate. Mayo was the chosen one, an heir to Belichick’s throne, groomed by the best in the business and ready to lead the Patriots into a new era.

For those who knew him, this wasn’t a surprise. Mayo was always more than just a player. As his former teammate Brandon Spikes put it, “That man was born for this. He was born to be the New England Patriots head coach.” Mayo’s leadership qualities were evident from the get-go. From his days at the University of Tennessee, where he was a standout linebacker, to his time in the NFL, Mayo was the guy you wanted in your corner. His teammates didn’t just follow him on the field; they looked up to him, respected him, and, most importantly, they believed in him.

During his playing days, Mayo wasn’t just another cog in Belichick’s machine. He was the quarterback of the defense, the guy who knew the playbook inside and out, the one who could anticipate an opponent’s next move before they even lined up. And while he was a beast on the field, tallying up tackles and leading by example, it was his presence in the locker room that truly set him apart. He was the glue, the guy who kept things light when the pressure mounted, who rallied the troops when morale dipped, who took rookies under his wing and showed them the ropes.

When Mayo hung up his cleats, it was only natural for him to step into a coaching role. And as you might expect, he hit the ground running. He didn’t need a title to start leading. He’d already been doing that for years. His transition from player to coach was seamless, almost as if he’d been preparing for it his entire life. Devin McCourty, another Patriots legend, summed it up perfectly: “I think of a guy who can stand in front of a room, and no matter what they say, the men in the room walk away saying, I’ll follow that guy.”

A family man, Mayo and his wife Chantel have three daughters and a son, living a simple life in Massachusetts. Known as a family-oriented man, Mayo is on a 5 year contract worth $18,900,000.

So here we are, at the dawn of a new chapter in Patriots history. The kid from Hampton, Virginia, who grew up idolizing linebackers like Derrick Brooks, is now the man in charge. It’s a big job, no doubt about it. But if there’s one thing we know about Jerod Mayo, it’s that he was born for this. Just like Brady was born to throw game-winning touchdowns and Belichick was born to out-scheme the competition, Mayo was born to lead. And the Patriots? Well, they’re in pretty good hands.