New England Patriots stars given harsh verdict from coach after NFL loss in London

The New England Patriots were embarrassed by the Jacksonville Jaguars at Wembley Stadium on Sunday, with Jerod Mayo pulling no punches in his assessment of his team’s performance

Jerod Mayo didn’t mince his words when he lambasted his New England Patriots players for their lacklustre performance, branding them “soft” after they were thoroughly outplayed by the Jacksonville Jaguars at London’s iconic Wembley Stadium on Sunday.

Despite a promising start that saw the Patriots lead 10-0 at the end of the first quarter, the team’s fortunes nosedived as they conceded 25 unanswered points around halftime, culminating in a disheartening 32-16 loss against one of the NFL’s struggling teams. Both the Patriots and the Jaguars had dismal 1-5 records before the game, but it was Trevor Lawrence’s Jaguars who dominated, leaving the Patriots trailing in their wake.

The gulf in class was starkly evident in the ground game. The Patriots’ running attack was virtually non-existent, managing a meagre 38 yards, with quarterback Drake Maye scrambling for half of those. In stark contrast, the Jaguars (now 2-5) powered through with an impressive 171 rushing yards and two touchdowns courtesy of Tank Bigsby, while the Patriots’ defense struggled to regain possession.

Brian Thomas Jr’s dazzling display further compounded the Patriots’ woes, as he effortlessly outshone New England’s Christian Gonzalez, hinting at his burgeoning superstar status. Now on a six-game losing streak with a 1-6 record, Mayo delivered a scathing critique of his team’s performance both privately in the locker room and publicly during his postgame press conference.

“We’re a soft football team across the board,” Mayo declared. “What makes a tough football team is being able to run the ball, being able to stop the run, and being able to cover kicks and we did none of those today. [It is] back to the drawing board. We can’t sit here and pout. We just have to put a game together.”

Mayo’s stinging critique was still making waves among his squad at England’s national stadium and the harsh words are set to echo through Foxborough in the coming days.

Linebacker Jahlani Tavai took the feedback on the chin, sharing with journalists, “He said it well,” before admitting, “We have to look in the mirror and we have to understand what he’s saying. If we’re OK being soft, some guys will fall off. The rest of us who want to prove that wrong will step up and make sure this doesn’t happen.”

An impressive performance from Drake Maye could not prevent the Pats from succumbing to a sixth straight loss

An impressive performance from Drake Maye could not prevent the Pats from succumbing to a sixth straight loss (

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Richard Heathcote/Getty Images)

In spite of witnessing a disheartening performance from his team, rookie QB Maye could still draw some positives from his second NFL outing. Even though he delivered 276 yards and two touchdowns without a single turnover, Maye appeared downcast during his post-match media session.

Backing up his coach’s frank assessment, Maye remarked, “Coach Mayo isn’t going to come in here and say something he hasn’t said in the locker room,” adding, “We’re not tough. You always preach being tough. He preached it today.”

Giving insight into Mayo’s locker room talk, Maye shared, “Being tough is running the football, stopping the run, and covering kicks, is what he said. I think he does a great job of leaving the message to us. And the guys know. Jon Jones gave a speech after the game, saying, ‘You gotta find it. You gotta find something.’ What we’re doing is not good enough. You’ve got to man up.”