Jerod Mayo Reveals Truth About Costly Patriots Draft Mistake

The New England Patriots are 3-12 heading into the final two weeks of the regular season. In recent weeks, they have been playing competitive football while not winning games, the best-case recipe for Pats fans who want to see development but don't want to jeopardize a high draft pick.

The first season under Jerod Mayo was always going to be a difficult transition. After winning four games in 2023, the Patriots are on track to win three this season, barring a surprise victory over the Los Angeles Chargers or Buffalo Bills.

At the same time, the performance of a few draft picks has been more disappointing than the results. The Patriots used a second-round pick and a fourth-round pick on two wide receivers in the 2024 NFL Draft: Ja'Lynn Polk and Javon Baker, respectively. Neither player panned out so far, Polk being particularly disappointing in his playing time.

The Polk selection with the 37th-overall pick is coming into focus on Saturday when the Patriots take on the Chargers and WR Ladd McConkey. New England had the chance to draft McConkey with the 34th-overall pick but moved down and grabbed Polk instead. McConkey has been the best receiver for the Chargers so far, putting up 69 catches for 960 yards and five touchdowns.

Jerod Mayo was understandably asked about this in his Thursday press conference. Mayo said the team did some work on him but decided to look elsewhere, per MassLive's Mark Daniels.

"We did some work on him (before the draft). A guy that can open versus man-to-man coverage. He’s playing well right now. He also does a good job finding space in the zone coverages. He’s definitely a player you’ve got to keep your eye on. "

- Jerod Mayo on WR Ladd McConkey

When asked whether passing on McConkey had something to do with the team having a slot receiver on the roster, Mayo refused to provide a convincing answer and said, "As a whole, I would say we’re always looking to improve our roster. What position that happens to be could change on a daily basis during those times."

That is not a very satisfying answer from Mayo. However, it's important to note that he likely didn't have much say about the McConkey vs. Polk decision. Perhaps we can hear from Eliot Wolf one day about this big draft mistake.

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