Jerod Mayo vocal on Bill Belichick’s son staying on Patriots’ staff

One of Jerod Mayo’s first decisions as New England Patriots head coach was to extend offers to Brian Belichick and Steve Belichick after the team parted ways with their father, Bill Belichick, in January.

Steve Belichick didn’t take Mayo’s offer to remain in New England, opting to join Jedd Fisch’s staff at Washington. However, Brian Belichick did, keeping his job as safeties coach and making him one of the few coaches retained from last year’s staff.

While some were surprised by Mayo’s decision to keep the lesser-known Belichick, he had a simple reason for the move when asked about it ahead of Monday’s Organized Team Activities (OTAs) practice.

“True professional,” Mayo told reporters when asked about Brian Belichick on Monday. “Anytime you see your dad and your brother go somewhere else, the natural thing would be to go with them. But he is a New Englander. He is a Patriot. I am happy to have him. I know [Patriots defensive coordinator] DeMarcus [Covington] is happy to have him as well. I think he is a great coach, and I still think he has room to grow. He has really taken it by the horns and worked on his development. So, excited to have him.”

Belichick has spent his entire coaching career with the Patriots. He actually began his career in the NFL as a scouting assistant, spending a year in New England’s front office in 2016. He made the switch to the sidelines in 2017, joining his father’s staff as a coaching assistant. He remained in that role through the 2019 season, getting promoted to safeties coach during the 2020 season.