Patriots players apparently didn’t view Bill Belichick as a dead man walking across his final weeks in New England.
Belichick’s departure from Foxboro, Mass. wasn’t a complete stunner to anyone who follows the Patriots. New England floundered after Tom Brady’s exit in 2020 and the franchise hit rock bottom this season with its worst campaign in decades. Simply put, it was time for both sides to go their separate ways.
Nonetheless, Belichick’s exit still surprised some Patriots players, including linebacker Mack Wilson.
“Honestly, we didn’t know as players,” Wilson told AtoZ Sports’ Sophie Weller. “I feel like we was just taking it one day at a time, trying to put our best foot forward. And we honestly didn’t know if Bill was gonna be the head coach, if they was gonna move on from Bill, if (Jerod) Mayo was gonna get the head coach — we didn’t know nothing. Obviously until we heard that RKK (Robert Kraft) and Bill was gonna have the little thing together and whatnot and to discuss the future. I didn’t even get that feeling. We definitely didn’t see it coming like that for real. Honestly, we didn’t think it was gonna happen.”
Wilson enjoyed playing under Belichick, but the 25-year-old acknowledged he and his fellow ‘backers were “pumped” and “excited” to see Mayo earn a promotion. A week before the coaching transition, Wilson admitted Mayo’s presence on the Patriots coaching staff would be a factor in his free agency decision.
It remains to be seen if Wilson will be back with New England next season, but the Alabama product has “no doubt” Mayo can spark a turnaround in Foxboro.
