“It was freaking painful” - Patriots insider delves into billionaire owner Robert Kraft’s state of mind over firing Jerod Mayo

New England Patriots insider Tom Curran says Robert Kraft's decision to fire Jerod Mayo was not an easy one. The Patriots let Mayo go on Jan. 5 after just one season as head coach. The former player was being groomed to be Bill Belichick's replacement, but after a challenging season, he was let go.

According to Curran, the decision to fire Mayo was not easy for Kraft, who has a net worth of 11 billion, according to Celebrity Net Worth.

“I think the organization certainly was motivated by that," Curran said. "We can’t lose out on him. Mayo’s struggling. We just got blasted by the Chargers. Now we’ve won the game and dropped to 4th overall. Do we want to continue with what we have and let Jerod develop to an unknown level in 2025 or do we want to have someone we trust."

"It was freaking painful for them to move on from Mayo. You could see it on Kraft’s face. Very painful for him. Which is no solace I’m sure for Jerod but you have to do what’s good for your football team and it’s a business.”

Mayo ended up going 4-13 in his lone season as the Patriots coach. However, after New England beat the Buffalo Bills in the final week of the season, the Patriots lost the chance to draft first overall, which could have been the final straw.

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Robert Kraft explains the decision to fire Jerod Mayo

Robert Kraft says the decision to fire Jerod Mayo wasn't an easy one. Kraft acknowledged that he put Mayo in a terrible decision but believes the former player has the potential to be a successful NFL coach.

"This whole situation is on me. I feel terrible for Jerod because I put him in an untenable situation," Robert Kraft said, via NFL.com. "I know that he has all the tools as a head coach to be successful in this league. He just needed more time before taking the job. In the end, I'm a fan of this team first, and now, I have to go out and find a coach who can get us back to the playoffs and hopefully championships."

The Patriots ended up hiring Mike Vrabel to be their new head coach. New England will select fourth overall in the 2025 NFL Draft.