Mayo ready to roll
Patriots’ first-round pick ‘excited’ to get started
NFL. When it comes to playing the role of nervous rookie, Jerod Mayo has it down pat, no pun intended.
New England’s first-round pick met the media for the first time yesterday at Gillette Stadium, and in the first 60 seconds of an impromptu press conference that lasted a total of six-plus minutes, used the word “excited” four times and “overwhelmed” twice.
“I never thought I’d be on a team that lost only one game last year,” said Mayo, a linebacker who was taken with the 10th overall pick in last weekend’s NFL Draft out of Tennessee. “I’m excited to learn from some of the great vets, and become as good as those guys are.”
Mayo arrived at Gillette Stadium yesterday morning and met with owner Robert Kraft and coach Bill Belichick. Before joining Mayo for an on-field photo op shortly after noon, Kraft asked Mayo for his thoughts, and the player said Kraft and Mayo go together. “I think Kraft and Mayo go very well together,” the owner said with a smile before complimenting the young linebacker on his tie, formally introducing him to the media and presenting him with a ceremonial “No. 1” jersey.
The 6-foot-2, 230-pound Mayo, whose only previous trip to New England came during a pre-draft meeting with the Patriots, said the whole experience felt like “the first day of school,” but he wanted to assure New England fans he was their kind of player.
“I’m a hard worker, and I’m going to come in here and contribute to this team in any way I can, whether it be on special teams or as a starter,” he said. “I’m coming to make a contribution and help bring a championship here.”
As a rookie, Mayo faces an uncertain situation — with veterans like Tedy Bruschi, Mike Vrabel and Adalius Thomas already in the mix and the possibility of Junior Seau returning for another year, the Patriots’ linebacking corps is already a well-established group. But as far as Mayo is concerned, that’s no problem, saying he was excited at the chance to make his mark on a franchise that has a long history of talented linebackers.
“I’m just going to sit back and learn from the greats,” Mayo said. “Guys who have been winning championships before me. Hopefully, they’ll be winning them with me. So I’m excited.”
Mayo is a versatile presence, having played both inside and outside linebacker at Tennessee, but he’ll likely play inside in the Patriots’ 3-4 scheme.
“I feel like I can play either one of the positions, [but] until I get my playbook and sit down with my linebacker coach, I won’t know until then,” he said. “[But] I’m definitely ready. I definitely am. I’m going to be a sponge here, just try to pick up things from each and every one of these veterans on the team, and hopefully, I’ll have a great career like a lot of them have.”
A Virginia native, Mayo grew up as a Redskins fan, but said he’s happy to be part of an organization that’s committed to winning. In his initial conference call with reporters shortly after his selection, he said he noticed a different atmosphere in New England than he did at any one of his other pre-draft visits. His time at Gillette Stadium yesterday did nothing to dissuade that.
“It’s all about winning. They like to win games, and this organization is committed to winning games,” Mayo said. “Sitting down with Coach Belichick and him explaining how I fit in the system is really exciting to me. It had me excited. I’m just excited to get my playbook.
“I’m just ready to put my pads on now and hit somebody.”