With Bill Belichick and the Patriots parting ways earlier in the week, the team had two job openings they needed to fill: head coach and general manager. On Friday, the Patriots announced they promoted ILB coach Jerod Mayo to head coach. However, although they moved quickly to hire a new head coach, the team isn’t expected to hire a general manager, according to Phil Perry of NBC Sports Boston.
“Here’s what I’m told on the Patriots front-office situation,” Perry tweeted on Saturday. “They are not expected to bring in a new general manager. It’s anticipated by team sources that both Matt Groh and Eliot Wolf will remain with the Patriots and have prominent roles in personnel.”
Earlier Saturday morning, Adam Schefter of ESPN reported that the Patriots were in ‘no rush’ to hire a general manager and might wait until after the draft to make an official announcement.
“They’re in no rush to hire a general manager,” ESPN’s Adam Schefter said Saturday morning via A to Z Sports Sophie Weller. “They might even wait until after the draft to hire a general manager.”
If the Patriots do indeed wait until after the draft to hire a general manager, that would certainly be a choice. Between free agency, scouting, the combine, and the NFL Draft – not having a general manager wouldn’t be ideal for the Patriots.
On the flip side – Robert Kraft has shown a tendency to hire people in-house; thus, the Patriots have a couple of options to fill the position. Director of Scouting Elliot Wolf is seen by many as the top option for general managers.
Wolf, 41, joined the front office in 2020 as a draft consultant and eventually was promoted to director of scouting in 2022. Also, Wolf has spent time elsewhere during his NFL career. He spent 14 seasons with the Packers, including the Director of Football operations and the director of player personnel. Then, in 2018, he left Green Bay and joined the Cleveland Browns front office, where he was an assistant general manager for two years. Wolf’s father, Ron Wolf, is a Hall of Fame general manager.
It’s important to note the Patriots haven’t had a general manager since 1993, before Robert Kraft even owned the team. Not hiring a General manager could be a risky move by Kraft, and it’s putting a lot of trust into the youngest head coach of the NFL, Jerod Mayo.
The Patriots will hold an introductory press conference on Wednesday afternoon to formally induct Jerod Mayo as their new head coach.
My name is Ben Belford-Peltzman and I am the creator and writer of The Patriots Beat. I am a 17-year kid who is an optimistic pessimist about the City of Champions. I started The Patriots Beat in August of 2022 and never expected to grow so much but here we are. Feel free to email Thepatriotsbeat@gmail.com with any inquires.
