The New England Patriots have named inside linebackers coach and former player Jerod Mayo as their new head coach following the departure of long-serving Bill Belichick.
The Patriots on Thursday announced they and Belichick, 71, had mutually agreed to part ways following a 24-year tenure featuring six Super Bowl titles.
Belichick’s successor Mayo played for the Patriots from 2008 to 2015 before returning when he joined Belichick’s coaching staff in 2019. At 37, Mayo becomes the youngest current head coach in the NFL.
Captain for seven seasons and a Super Bowl champion in 2014, Mayo is the first former Patriots player to become head coach of the team.
He is to be formally introduced in his new role at a press conference next Wednesday.
Belichick took charge at the Patriots in 2000 and oversaw an unprecedented run of success, including three Super Bowl titles in the space of four seasons, as well as 17 AFC East division titles and 18 play-off appearances.
The Patriots ended the 2023 season with a 4-13 record, the worst of Belichick’s coaching career.
49ers place Christian McCaffrey on injured reserve
The San Francisco 49ers placed star running back Christian McCaffrey on injured reserve Saturday, ensuring that he will miss at least the next four games with calf and Achilles injuries.
The move is a shocking departure from the optimism of less than two weeks ago, when McCaffrey was a last-minute scratch for the 49ers’ season-opening win over the New York Jets.
McCaffrey missed the entire pre-season with what was reported as calf soreness. In the regular season, teams are required to submit official injury reports, and McCaffrey’s designation included Achilles tendonitis.
Last year’s rushing champion will miss a minimum of four more games, with the earliest possible return date coming on Oct. 10.
The 49ers face the Minnesota Vikings, Los Angeles Rams, New England Patriots and Arizona Cardinals over their next four, but there is no guarantee that McCaffrey will return when first eligible.
San Francisco ruled McCaffrey out for Sunday’s game in Minnesota on Friday, with head coach Kyle Shanahan publicly acknowledging for the first time that the 2023 Offensive Player of the Year could end up on IR.
“Yesterday was his worst day,” Shanahan told reporters. “It's on and off, but with yesterday having the most pain. It's something we're going to be discussing together in the next 24 hours.”
The loss is a massive one for the reigning NFC champions, who went 12-5 in McCaffrey’s first full season with the team last year.
With Elijah Mitchell already placed on IR before the start of the season, the only trusted running back on San Francisco’s roster is Jordan Mason, who ran the ball 28 times for 147 yards and a touchdown.
McCaffrey’s extended absence could also result in Deebo Samuel getting more snaps at running back, a look that was more common before the 49ers traded for McCaffrey during the 2022 season.
This is McCaffrey’s first IR stint since joining the 49ers. The Stanford product played a combined 10 games in the 2020 and 2021 seasons due to ankle and hamstring injuries.
McCaffrey led the NFL with 2,023 yards from scrimmage last season and tied with Raheem Mostert for the league lead at 21 touchdowns.
Jamaica's Sports Minister congratulates Sheldon Clarke on history-making NFL advance
The Minister of Culture, Gender, Entertainment and Sport, the Honourable Olivia Grange, has said that Sheldon Clarke former student of Munro College, deserves hearty congratulations and best wishes for his history making advance to the National Football League's International Player Pathway (NFL-IPP) Combine in the United Kingdom.
The NFL International Player Pathway programme offers the opportunity for athletes to bridge the gap between their current skills and the demands of professional American football.
The Combine is scheduled for October 10-12, 2024.
If successful at the Combine, Clarke who is 21, could earn a place in a training programme designed to prepare international athletes for the rigours of the NFL.
Minister Grange said, “This selection is not just a personal triumph for Sheldon, but an inspiration for every young athlete in Jamaica who aspires to play American football."
At the Combine, he will undergo rigorous physical tests, skill evaluations, and interviews with NFL personnel.
49ers considering putting McCaffrey on injured reserve amid fitness battle
The San Francisco 49ers are considering placing star running back Christian McCaffrey on injured reserve as he continues to battle calf and Achilles issues.
McCaffrey missed the Niners' season-opening victory over the New York Jets on Monday, having struggled with soreness in his right calf and tendinitis in his Achilles.
On Thursday, head coach Kyle Shanahan ruled McCaffrey out of the team's Week 2 trip to face the Minnesota Vikings on Sunday, and conversations are now taking place about placing him on the injured reserve list.
If they do so, he will have to sit out at least four more games, leaving San Francisco without one of their foremost offensive weapons for a significant period of the season.
"It's something we're considering now," Shanahan told reporters. "Yesterday was his worst day.
"It's on and off, but with yesterday having the most pain. It's something we're going to be discussing together in the next 24 hours."
McCaffrey won the NFL's Offensive Player of the Year award for 2023 after helping San Francisco reach Super Bowl LVIII in Las Vegas, where they suffered a dramatic overtime defeat against the Kansas City Chiefs.
He led the NFL in rushing with 1,459 yards with 14 touchdowns in his first full season with the 49ers, having arrived in a blockbuster trade from the Carolina Panthers in 2022.
McCaffrey admitted his injury problems were causing him plenty of frustration earlier this week, telling reporters: "My mindset every week is that I'm going to play.
"There's been weeks when I'll go the full week, not even feeling good enough to do the walk-through, and then I wake up and the body's capable of a lot of cool things.
"Mentally, I'm always prepared to play, and then I woke up and it was a group decision, a very tough one.
"I hate not playing, but I look at it as a chess move and something that hopefully you can benefit from the rest of the season."
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