Jahlani Tavai was in hot water Friday morning, leaving the Patriots having to do something.
New England fans booed and chanted for Jerod Mayo to be fired during the Patriots’ 40-7 loss to the Los Angeles Chargers last Saturday. That reaction didn’t sit right with Tavai, who in an appearance on WEEI’s “Greg Hill Show” said that fans should “know their place.”
Fans unsurprisingly, didn’t take too kindly to the suggestion, and Mayo did have a response for one of his players.
“I’ve handled that internally,” Mayo told reporters, per a team-provided transcript. “We had a conversation about it, so I’m going to keep that in house. I will say this, look, for the fans — I’ve said this before. I’m a fan of different things, too. Look, no one’s happy, no one’s happy with our record, no one’s happy where we are right now. The fans, look, they pay the bills, they come in here, they demand us to go out there and perform well, and we haven’t done that this year. So, look, I understand.”
Multiple Patriots players like Davon Godchaux and Deatrich Wise Jr. also voiced their opinions about fan unrest. Mayo understood where the players were coming from but also understood the bigger picture.
“I’ve talked to the guys about how — look, they’re getting caught up in trying to defend me,” Mayo said. “I’ve told them, look, I appreciate it, but at the same time, the fans are the most important thing here. They want to see good football, and they want to see wins.”
Mayo added that he knows not everyone will be a fan of the Patriots or him. He did preach for his players to put their heads and keep working to get better. They’ll look to do that this Sunday when they welcome the Buffalo Bills to Gillette Stadium.
