How aggressively will Patriots rebuild? Jerod Mayo ‘ready to burn some cash’

Henry McKenna

AFC East Reporter

The New England Patriots look something like the Boston Patriots. Back when the team was synonymous with failure. Back before legendary coaches Bill Belichick and Bill Parcells. Back before owner Robert Kraft.

Everyone in New England is hoping this new era will feel nothing like those old eras. The Patriots are planning for a quick rebuild.

But the truth is that most rebuilds take years in the NFL. It’s possible the Patriots haven’t even hit rock bottom yet.

Coach Jerod Mayo has inherited a team with substantially less talent than the one Belichick inherited back in 2000. It seems Belichick didn’t do as good of a job stewarding the team for his successor as Pete Carroll and Parcells did.

But Mayo has made it clear that he recognizes the talent gap that exists. (How could he not? The Patriots were 4-13 last season.) He alluded to big offseason plans during a recent appearance on WEEI sports radio when Mayo was asked whether he had assurances from Kraft that the franchise would spend in free agency.

“We’re bringing in talent, 1,000 percent,” Mayo told WEEI’s “The Greg Hill Show.” “Have a lot of cap space, and cash. Ready to burn some cash.”

He was being playful when he said: “Ready to burn some cash.” You could hear it in his tone of voice. But he wasn’t kidding when he said the Patriots will bring in talent. And that’ll cost money, especially now that they’re not a team with a good reputation.

Lucky for the Patriots, they have money — roughly $70 million in cap space. (And it’s easy to see them getting to $14.3 million more in space by cutting cornerback J.C. Jackson.)

Under the previous regime, players often said they joined the Patriots for Tom Brady and/or Belichick. Now, they’ve got Mayo and … Mac Jones (or is it Bailey Zappe?), so it will be a tougher recruitment process. Unless they somehow sign Kirk Cousins, the top pending free agent, the Patriots’ quarterback situation will not be a selling point. And Mayo remains an unknown entity.

The recruitment to New England will come down to one thing: money.

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If the free agency experience is anything like the process of hiring coaches, top executive Eliot Wolf will lead the charge. Mayo and every newly hired Patriots coordinator referenced Wolf during their introductory press conferences on Wednesday. He seemed to have been enormously influential in those coordinator hires.

Wolf has been the team’s director of scouting since 2022 and has been with the Patriots since 2020, but it seems he is the team’s de-facto general manager, with oversight over the staffing movement. That would mean Matt Groh, previously the team’s top executive under Belichick, remains in the backseat. And Wolf has leapfrogged Groh.

So where can the Patriots add talent? Everywhere, especially on offense.

Before we get to the offense, let’s do the quick-and-dirty on the defense. The unit looked quite good in 2023, though New England did begin clearing house of their aging contributors this week by releasing safety Adrian Phillips and DT Lawrence Guy. They were in-house leaders and players who took a large number of snaps. Those snaps, however, will apparently go to younger players who will help build the future in New England.

It’s not like the Patriots won’t need to add on defense. It’s just that they already have talent at every level. And Mayo has already proven (admittedly with the help of Belichick) he can get production out of this group. But I’d like to see the Patriots retain safety Kyle Dugger and edge Josh Uche. They are foundational pieces for the defense. I don’t think it’s crazy for New England to want to keep the band together there.

OK, so back to the offense.

Let’s look at the positions that are essentially decided for 2024.

QB:
WR:
WR:
WR:
TE:
RB: Rhamondre Stevenson
LT:
LG:
C: David Andrews
RG:
RT:

It’s like Andrews and Stevenson are experiencing the John Travolta GIF from “Pulp Fiction” — or the Will Smith GIF from “Fresh Prince of Belair.”

I can accept the argument that offensive lineman Cole Strange deserves to be a part of the conversation as a clearcut starter at left guard, because he was a first-round pick. That’s fine. But in terms of his caliber of play? I don’t think he’s clearcut to start. Not at all.

The Patriots could and should bring back Michael Onwenu, a pending free agent, at either right guard or right tackle. (He played and excelled in both spots in 2023.) They could bring back tight end Hunter Henry and receiver Kendrick Bourne. It’s also likely that Demario Douglas will be a factor at receiver — just like Sidy Sow should compete at right guard. But if the Patriots want their offense to improve, they aren’t likely to make use of many of the guys they currently have on the roster on offense.

It’s crucial New England can begin to do what is so difficult: hit in free agency and the draft. The revamp will begin on offense.

It will start with a quarterback. New offensive coordinator Alex Van Pelt will help Wolf add to the position. The Patriots have all that money for free agents along with the No. 3 overall pick. If New England stays in that spot, it will almost certainly take a quarterback, most likely LSU‘s Jayden Daniels or UNC‘s Drake Maye.

“Just goes back to decision-making, accuracy, the fundamentals, mechanics, if the guy is sound,” Van Pelt said when asked what he looks for in a QB prospect. “Big one again is leadership. Was he a three-year captain? You know, why wasn’t he a captain? So all that really plays together. The big piece for me is the leadership, the toughness, the accuracy and the decision-making. All four are super important.”

Van Pelt said “everything is on the table” when asked if Jones could start in 2024. But, from my vantage, it makes more sense to trade him. And New England might also part ways with Zappe, too.

By May, the Patriots will likely have added one of the following types of QBs: 1) a veteran starter (Think: Cousins) or 2) a rookie first-rounder (Think: Maye or Daniels).

And then New England will also add one of the following types: 1) a veteran journeyman (Think: Jacoby Brissett), 2) a young developmental castoff QB (Think: Sam Howell or Justin Fields) or a late-round QB (Think: Tulane‘s Michael Pratt).

Once they know their QB, the Patriots will begin to build the pieces around him.

Given what we know about Van Pelt, who likes to heavily feature the run game, the offensive line will play a big role in the rebuild. New England is going to spend money and picks to solidify that unit around Andrews and the QBs. And then maybe — just maybe — the Patriots will get the WR1 they’ve coveted since Randy Moss left in 2010.

It’s a big, ambitious plan — one that’s going to cost Kraft a lot of money. And so it’s a good thing Mayo, Wolf and Kraft are ready to burn some cash.

But for New England fans, who might not be accustomed to losing games, this is going to be a process. A long one. That offensive depth chart above should paint the picture pretty clearly. The Patriots have a long way to go before they can compete with the Bills and Dolphins in the AFC East — let alone the Chiefs in the AFC.

Prior to joining FOX Sports as the AFC East reporter, Henry McKenna spent seven years covering the Patriots for USA TODAY Sports Media Group and Boston Globe Media. Follow him on Twitter at @henrycmckenna.