A new era has begun.
And it started well.
Despite all the criticism, doubt and uncertainty, the New England Patriots made a serious statement with an impressive 16-10 victory over the Cincinnati Bengals in Week 1 of the 2024 season. The Patriots played well in nearly every aspect of the game — offense, defense and special teams, which were all major questions leading into the season. Plain and simple, the Patriots were clutch.
Fans were probably shaking their heads after the win, thinking maybe this team is better than initially thought. That could be accurate but let’s not get too excited about one win.
Patriots head coach Jerod Mayo is carrying a massive challenge as the man to replace Bill Belichick, who won six Super Bowl championships with New England. Whether fans want to believe it or not, it was time for a change, a new chapter in Foxboro, and Mayo is the person leading that charge. Many also thought Mayo wasn’t the right person for the job to start. Many believed former Patriot Mike Vrabel would be perfect for the role in New England. Well, owner Robert Kraft put his trust in Mayo and the early returns seem to be warranted.
After the win in Cincinnati, Kraft said in the locker room that he is “proud of the new players, the new coaches.” He added that “people add excuses that it couldn’t happen.” Kraft then gave Mayo the game ball and the players erupted in celebration.
It started with a rebuilding of this organization.
When the Patriots selected quarterback Drake Maye as their first pick in the draft, everyone thought he would be given the nod to run this team into the future from the very beginning. Well, after training camp and preseason, Mayo thought it best that veteran Jacoby Brissett would be the starting QB. It was a gutsy decision, but it paid dividends against the Bengals. He was poised, confident and ran a solid offensive game.
The offensive line, which had been a disaster during the preseason, was better than expected. Again, it’s only one game. The Patriots limited the amount of overall mistakes en route to victory. Mayo deserves a ton of credit for the win. During his brief tenure as head coach, he’s been a little bit of Belichick, combined with a lot of new-school self.
After the hay was in the barn this week and the Patriots were preparing to travel to Cincinnati, Mayo was asked what it meant to him that his time had finally arrived.
“You have a three-hour block that’s all about football,” he told reporters. “Everything else doesn’t really matter. We look at these guys as just football players, but they’re men, they’re fathers and they’re husbands. It’s just one of those opportunities where nothing else matters. It’s a very special feeling. That’s one of the things when guys retire, they miss that. So, it’s a special day.”
His players responded appropriately by dumping a cooler of Gatorade on him when the victory was official.
“We’re going to enjoy this on the flight home and get ready for next week,” Mayo told reporters after the game. “I’m very proud, and my message to the players — without them, I’m nothing and I made sure they knew that.”
Doubt ran rampant during the offseason and it bled into training camp. Still, it seemed the positives outweighed the negatives. Obviously, it’s a small sample size with only one victory in the books to start the season, but the Patriots made their presence felt and it could lead to a massive confidence boost. That was probably Mayo’s message to the players after the win, too. Everyone doubts the Patriots’ ability to win without Tom Brady, Belichick and Kraft, but it should also serve as motivation to prove everyone wrong.
The shadows are gone, and the new era has arrived.
It was a great start, but let’s not book hotels for the Super Bowl quite yet because there’s so much more this team needs to accomplish. The Patriots deserve a ton of credit for finishing with a win in the first game of the season. It could be even more impressive if they could come away with a win against the Seattle Seahawks on Sunday at Gillette Stadium.
