Patriots players emphatically dispute viral 'mutiny in locker room' comment

With Bill Belichick's departure four years after Tom Brady left the Patriots, it was expected that the immediate future would be easy. It's not often that a team employs the same head coach for more than two decades and accomplishes as much success as they did, making it more impossible for the next guy up to feel comfortable following in those footsteps.

It's an even taller task when the new head coach is as inexperienced as Jerod Mayo, who was promoted to the position at least a year or two before he was supposed to, according to the rumor mill.

Things appeared to be smooth at the beginning of his tenure, especially since players had been advocating for him to be the next head coach throughout the 2023 season. The atmosphere in Foxboro was much lighter than it had been for a few years. Although the team wasn't projected to have a winning year, players were clearly bought in and ready to play for Mayo, which was a good sign early in his tenure.

But some of that has come into question recently, given how poorly the Patriots have fared so far this season. Frustrations have been seen on the sideline and expressed to the media, which prompted some to question if the good vibes in the locker room were long gone.

It was then put over the edge when Patriots.com writer Evan Lazar stated they were "teetering on a mutiny" behind the scenes, which went viral in New England.

With that at the forefront of fans' and reporters' minds, many players were asked about the claim, and their responses were very telling.

Patriots players were having none of the 'mutiny' claims about the locker room dynamic

Several outlets asked players for comments on Friday morning regarding the controversial report, many of whom wanted to remain anonymous. Those players were quick to call out the falsehood of the statement made by Lazar with one taking it a step further to let his feelings known on the matter: “That’s bull (expletive)!”

Every response was emphatic and stated the same message: frustration is certainly going on, but the team is far from turning on Mayo or each other.

That was echoed by one Patriots captain, Jabrill Peppers, to MassLive's Karen Guregian, who explained that the unexpected injuries to some of their best players (David Andrews, Christian Barmore, and Ja'Whaun Bentley), plus the departures of Matthew Judon via trade and Chukwuma Okorafor, have made the start of the season much more difficult.

“There’s no excuses, but we’re dealing with a lot of things we didn’t foresee. Obviously, we wanna put a better product out there, but it’s not (Mayo) losing the locker room. He has the locker room. That’s never going to be an issue around here.

He’s a great coach. He knows what he’s talking about. He’s played not only here, but in the league, and made it to the highest level. He listens. He’s a playful guy, but when it’s time work, it’s time to work, you know what I mean? We love playing for former players who understand it from your perspective and now, his new perspective as a coach, and how to go about things.”

Peppers' words are just the latest show of support for Mayo from a current player. Others have previously shared they would "run through a wall" for him and emphasized how personable of a coach he is, which is a nice change of pace.

It's a given that things won't be peachy all the time when a team is struggling like the Patriots, but at this point in time, it seems clear that Lazar's negative perception of what's going on is not an accurate portrayal of the player's perspective, which is all that matters.

Hopefully, that will remain for the rest of the season, no matter how bumpy it might get.

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