FOXBORO — Jerod Mayo has been a man of many media miscues in his first season as Patriots head coach.
We don’t need to go through all of them right now, but seemingly every week Mayo makes a statement that’s head-scratching or needs to be walked back a day later.
Let’s give credit where it’s due, however. Mayo has consistently said the right thing when asked about fans booing during Saturday’s loss and chanting “fire Mayo” late in the game.
Mayo has repeatedly said that fans pay to attend games and have the right to voice their opinion.
From Saturday post-game: “Look, you hear those things, but at the same time, they paid to sit in the seats, and we’ve got to play better. If we play better, we don’t have to hear that stuff.”
From Monday: “Look, they’re disappointed in the record. I understand that. Look, even with you guys in the media, I understand what your job is, and that’s okay. My thing is it’s always about the team, and it’s about winning football games.”
Clearly, Mayo didn’t instruct his own players on how to address fans, however.
Linebacker Jahlani Tavai made headlines Friday morning on WEEI by saying that fans “have gotta know their place.”
That came after Tavai said he was frustrated by boos and that he “told a fan to quiet down in a non-polite way.”
“There’s a reason why they’re fans. Everybody can say what they think we should be doing, but in the long end they’re not qualified to do what Mayo is doing or whatever the Krafts are doing,” Tavai said on “The Greg Hill Show.” “They’re fans, I appreciate them at times, but sometimes they just gotta know their place and just understand that it’s a work in progress. Rome wasn’t built in one day.”
Mayo said Friday that the matter had been addressed internally.
“We had a conversation about it, so I’m gonna keep that in-house,” Mayo said. “I will say this, look, for the fans, I’ve said this before, I’m a fan of different things too. No one’s happy with our record. No one’s happy where we are right now. And the fans, they pay the bills, and they come in here and they demand us to go out there and perform well. And we haven’t done that this year. So look, I understand.”
Tavai later clarified his comments, saying he was frustrated and apologizing to anyone he offended. But he also instructed fans to “be fans,” “support us” and “don’t be a critic.”
This never needed to blow up if Mayo had simply told his players to cut it out after Saturday’s game.
Mayo answered “no” in a follow-up question on if he had instructed players how to speak about fans this week after defensive tackle Davon Godchaux and defensive end Deatrich Wise had been critical of the boos and chants after Saturday’s loss.
“I’ve talked to the guys about how — look, they’re getting caught up in trying to defend me,” Mayo said. “And I’ve told them, ‘Look, I appreciate it. But at the same time, the fans are, you know, the most important thing here, and they want to see good football, and they want to see wins.'”
Defensive tackle Davon Godchaux called the “fire Mayo” chants ridiculous on Saturday and said there “could have been better class by the fans with the booing and stuff like that.”
Defensive end Deatrich Wise, a captain, told MassLive’s Karen Guregian after the game, “With all respect to Patriot Nation, they’re a little spoiled. We don’t appreciate the boos. We don’t appreciate the outburst (against Mayo). If you’re a fan, be a fan with us through thick and thin.”
Wise pulled a Mayo and walked back the comments Friday on WEEI that he felt his words were misused and construed, but still referred to fan reaction as “inappropriate outbursts.”
When asked on “Jones and Keefe” how he felt his words were misconstrued, Wise would simply said that he loves the fanbase and “nobody likes to get booed, but we do understand why they were booing.”
Poor play can be more easily forgiven by a fanbase when players hold themselves accountable. New England has always had passionate fans. There were even times during the Patriots’ dynasty era when questionable play calls (a running play on third and long, for example) would be met with a smattering of boos. Devin McCourty and Tom Brady never told them to show some class.
They knew better because Bill Belichick had instructed them on what not to say.
And the fans have the right to voice their frustration after two straight seasons with four or fewer wins and five straight years without a playoff win.
Are Patriots fans spoiled? Maybe. But only because they hold the team to a high standard.
For now, at least fans care enough to boo the team. Anger and frustration are better than apathy, which is where this could be headed if the Patriots continue to string together lost seasons.
So, it feels wild to say this after how Mayo has handled speaking to the media since the day he was hired last January, but maybe Patriots players should listen to their head coach when he speaks to reporters about the fanbase.
Ultimately, Tavai, Godchaux and Wise are all veteran players who should know better than to call out fans, but Mayo is still not blameless.
Mayo has said since the summer that he encourages players to speak their minds. But he must realize when he has to put out fires before they’re fully ablaze. Things were merely simmering after Godchaux and Wise made their comments. On Friday morning, Mayo had a full-blown five-alarm fire on his hands after Tavai got finished on WEEI. Had he been proactive and told players that nothing good can come out of criticizing the fanbase, he wouldn’t have had to bring out the hoses after Tavai’s comments.
Now, if anything, fans will likely be even more inclined to let their feelings be known during Sunday’s game against the Bills. And Robert and Jonathan Kraft might not ignore it this offseason, because they realize the value of fan support.