Patriots' Keion White confused by Jerod Mayo's assessment of his performance

Of the last draft picks made by Bill Belichick in 2023, Keion White drew some of the most excitement as a rookie. He was taken in the second round after the Patriots selected Christian Gonzalez with their first-round pick, and he was expected to be a pass-rushing menace for an already dominant defense.

As is often the case for young players in their rookie NFL seasons, White had a slow start and didn't live up to the hype. Some were disappointed with his development, even if Belichick's decision to move him out of his natural position at defensive end contributed to his less-than-impressive rookie outing.

Fortunately for the new regime, White has already made waves this offseason, to the point that Jerod Mayo name-dropped his efforts during spring practices. Based on his improved performance and effort to become a leader, the new head coach praised White based on what he saw during OTAs and minicamp.

“Look, Keion White is doing a good job for us and I’d say also, Keion has kind of taken that step forward as far as being a leader. Not as much vocally, but you see him actually leading the groups and working well. So if you need a name, that is a good one.”

The comments were brought to White's attention after Thursday's practice, prompting him to confess his confusion about Mayo's assessment.

Keion White is focused on Year 2 and growing from a disappointing rookie season

While speaking to reporters after training camp practice concluded, White was asked about Mayo's comments from the spring regarding his development since he was drafted last year.

Instead of diving into why he believes Mayo was praising him, White expressed his approach this summer and what he hopes to accomplish moving forward, as he is not focusing on what he's already done.

"I don’t know why he said that about me, to be honest. You’d have to ask him that. I’ve still get to come out here every day and do my job, and work to get better. At the end of the day, I still feel like I have a bitter taste in my mouth from what we did last season. Ain’t nothing changed about that until we prove it this season."

His comments are very much in line with how he views his career trajectory so far, giving himself credit for playing the best he could as a rookie and his plans to get more comfortable in his second season.

“I feel like I’m still trying to earn my spot and just earn my stripes. I’m only going into year two. I may be older going into Year 2, but I’m still only going into Year 2. I still feel like I need to prove myself. Not only to my teammates, but the league.

Last year I was focused on doing my job and not messing up. And now, I kind of have a grasp on the defense and so I can focus on – I already know what my job is, I’m confident in it, and now I can focus on winning and beating my opponent."

That confidence and noticeable improvement that Mayo spoke about will inevitably pay off come the regular season. With Matthew Judon's New England future in question, White has a significant opportunity to become the new face of the defense or to form a dominant 1-2-punch with the veteran and wreak havoc on opposing quarterbacks for years to come.

While either scenario would be great, hopefully, it's the latter since Judon remaining a Patriot is what's best for the team.

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