Locked On Patriots - Daily Podcast On The New England Patriots - New England Patriots: Jerod Mayo, Beyond Foxboro; Bill Belichick Memories

Episode Date: January 20, 2024

The New England Patriots hiring of head coach Jerod Mayo has been met with a great deal of excitement and intrigue within Pats Nation. However, how is Mayo’s installation as the new ‘HC of the NEP...’ being met on a national level. Joining host Mike D’Abate is Tanya Ray Fox of FS1, as the duo discuss the buzz surrounding Mayo outside of Foxborough, the sociological impact of hiring and their favorite Bill Belichick memories. Find and follow Locked On Patriots on your favorite podcast platforms:Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast...Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1c5ZxFm...Stitcher: https://www.stitcher.com/show/locked-...And follow host Mike D’Abate on Twitter, where he’ll be sharing the latest news about the New England Patriots and talking with fans.Twitter: @mdabateNFLSupport Us By Supporting Our Sponsors!Jase MedicalEmpower yourself when you purchase a Jase Case, providing you with a personal supply of 5 antibiotics that treat 50+ infections. Get yours today at jasemedical.com and use code LOCKEDON to get $20 off your order.eBay MotorsFor parts that fit, head to eBay Motors and look for the green check. Stay in the game with eBay Guaranteed Fit at eBayMotos.com. Let’s ride. eBay Guaranteed Fit only available to US customers. Eligible items only. Exclusions apply. BetterHelpThis episode is sponsored by BetterHelp. Make your brain your friend, with BetterHelp. Visit BetterHelp.com/LOCKEDON today to get 10% off your first month.PrizePicksGo to PrizePicks.com/lockedonnfl and use code lockedonnfl for a first deposit match up to $100!GametimeDownload the Gametime app, create an account, and use code LOCKEDON for $20 off your first purchase.LinkedInLinkedIn Jobs helps you find the qualified candidates you want to talk to, faster. Post your job for free at LinkedIn.com/LOCKEDONNFL. Terms and conditions apply.FanDuelRight now, NEW customers get ONE HUNDRED AND FIFTY in BONUS BETS – GUARANTEED when you place a FIVE DOLLAR BET. Visit FanDuel.com/LOCKEDON to get started.FANDUEL DISCLAIMER: 21+ in select states. First online real money wager only. Bonus issued as nonwithdrawable free bets that expires in 14 days. Restrictions apply. See terms at sportsbook.fanduel.com. Gambling Problem? Call 1-800-GAMBLER or visit FanDuel.com/RG (CO, IA, MD, MI, NJ, PA, IL, VA, WV), 1-800-NEXT-STEP or text NEXTSTEP to 53342 (AZ), 1-888-789-7777 or visit ccpg.org/chat (CT), 1-800-9-WITH-IT (IN), 1-800-522-4700 (WY, KS) or visit ksgamblinghelp.com (KS), 1-877-770-STOP (LA), 1-877-8-HOPENY or text HOPENY (467369) (NY), TN REDLINE 1-800-889-9789 (TN) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

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Starting point is 00:00:00 There's a lot of excitement surrounding Gerard Mayo's hiring as the New England Patriots head coach right here in New England. But what about beyond Foxborough? Stick around. You're about to be locked in to the Locked On Patriots podcast. You are Locked On Patriots, your daily New England Patriots podcast. Part of the Locked On Podcast Network, your team every day. Hello to all of you, Foxborough faithful. Thank you once again for making Locked On Patriots a daily part of your New England Patriots coverage. Don't forget,
Starting point is 00:00:48 Lockdown Patriots is not only a proud part of the Lockdown Podcast Network, your team every day, but we are also free and available on all platforms, including YouTube. So smash that subscribe button, download and follow wherever you get your podcasts to ensure
Starting point is 00:01:03 that you get the latest episode as soon as it's available. I'm your host, Mike DeBate, and I cover your New England Patriots for Patriots Country of Fan Nation. So reach out to me and let me know what's on your mind on X at MDABATENFL. And while you're out there showing some social media love to Lockdown Patriots, please follow our account there as well at LO underscore Patriots. And of course, Pats fans, today's episode brought to you by PrizePix, the easiest and most exciting way to play daily fantasy sports. Go to
Starting point is 00:01:33 prizepix.com slash LockedOnNFL and use all lowercase LockedOnNFL for a first deposit match up to $100. And Pats fans, Gerard Mayo, the newly minted head coach of your New England Patriots officially been on the job just a few days already off to a fast start the Patriots have a number of candidates lined up and ready to be interviewed for their vacant defensive
Starting point is 00:01:57 coordinator position including current Patriots defensive line coach to Marcus Covington who I personally think would be a great hire but again that's a little bit above my purview Patriots defensive line coach, Jamarcus Covington, who I personally think would be a great hire. But again, that's a little bit above my purview. Patriots going to have a number of coaches coming into interview for that position. And of course, we found out late Thursday night, the Patriots are going to have to fill that now vacant offensive coordinator position with Bill O'Brien heading back to the collegiate ranks, and he's going to be the new OC for Ohio State. And a lot of you everydayers out there I know have been voicing your opinion on Gerard Mayo's hiring, the future state of the New England Patriots if you will. And so far here on BOD,
Starting point is 00:02:35 we've broken it down from a financial perspective with our good friend the Pats cap himself Miguel Benzon and of course a team perspective with Thomas Murphy here on Thursday. But today, we're going to examine Gerard Mayo's hiring from a national perspective. How is Gerard being viewed by the national media, both for his work on the field and for the sociological impact of his hiring? Folks, if we're talking national perspective, who better to join me to discuss all of this and more than one of our very favorites here on Locked On Patriots. Truly a member of the Locked On Patriots family, Tanya Ray Fox of FS1 and the Almost Shameless podcast is going to pop in here in a couple of seconds to lend her national wisdom and counsel, and we're even going to talk a little Bill Belichick.
Starting point is 00:03:18 So without further ado, it is my honor to welcome my good friend, Tanya Ray Fox, back to Locked on Patriots. Thank you for having me. It's always great. A little delayed, but we're at it. We still got lots of mayo to talk, so it's great, and I'm glad to be here. Glad to be able to get talking about the new coach. This is my first full podcast that I'm going to be able to actually chat long form about
Starting point is 00:03:42 it, so you're going to get some fresh, good stuff from me today. Absolutely, folks. And don't worry. I know if you follow Tanya on social media the way I do, you know that she and I are among Bill Belichick's biggest proponents. It's a bittersweet moment because there's definitely excitement on both of our parts to see where the Mayo era is going in New England. And we're excited about this hire, but we're also a little sad to see Bill go so we're going to take it home today by sharing our favorite Bill Belichick moments yeah folks you're not going to want to miss this one it's going to be a lot of fun so stick around to the end but Tanya I thought we'd start today with the national perspective because here in New England there's a lot of excitement about Gerard Mayo coming in we're hearing all
Starting point is 00:04:23 different kinds of rumors now that the coaching staff is going to be a lot more progressive. There's going to be a lot more open communication. Gerard and the Patriots are already starting to line up candidates to come in to potentially fill offensive coordinator, defensive coordinator roles. That D coordinator, obviously open, offensive coordinator now open too because of Bill O'Brien's leaving and going to Ohio State. But from a national perspective, there's kind of this undercurrent about the Patriots, at least from our perspective here in New England, that the Patriots are not exactly today's news any longer. This is a team that is 4-13, probably still a few years away from contending. So the shockwave sent through the NFL universe
Starting point is 00:05:05 may not have been as great as if this happened a couple of years ago. But you have your finger on the pulse of the national feed when it comes to the NFL. What is this hire being perceived like from a football perspective first? Are you hearing any type of either optimism or maybe pessimism when it comes to his hire
Starting point is 00:05:22 about Gerrard's ability to bring this team back to glory in relatively short order. Yeah, I think the national perspective obviously is it's going to be a little bit like less focused on what Gerrard's going to be able to do as a coach and more just, wow, this is such a massive shift. And I know, you know, on Fox Sports 1 where I work, there's been a lot of conversations on air
Starting point is 00:05:44 about the transition, obviously about Bill Belichick leaving. That was like one of the biggest stories in sports, but also then them hiring Gerard Mayo. It means a lot to a lot of people to see Gerard get this opportunity purely just as like a homegrown team, you know, sort of heir to the throne type coach. And for him to be a black coach in that spot is a big deal. So that means a lot to a lot of the, the, not even the national talent and people on ESPN and Fox sports, one in these other places where they're talking about this on air. And I've read a lot of columns, you know, about people talking so much about just the, the,
Starting point is 00:06:22 the magnitude of not only this, franchise hiring their you know first black coach but late head coach but also just the way that he was hired right so that's what people are kind of focusing on um and there has been a lot of discussion around that there is also a sense that this is a team that because they have a new head coach who is unproven, who is very young, um, that there will be a drop off in interest in the Patriots that has been happening over the last few years. And the tone is essentially like without Bill Belichick, why do we care about you? We let, we like Gerard Mayo. Hope he does well.
Starting point is 00:06:59 But what is there? Like you're a foreign, you're a four and 13 team that just fired or sent along the greatest head coach of all time. He is probably going to be somewhere else at some point. That is going to absolutely draw more interest than this young, you know, former Pro Bowl linebacker who's taken over the Patriots. Like they're just not equal. Um, and until there is a reason to pay attention to the Patriots again, which is winning major hires or a new quarterback, the interest level is going to continue to drop off, especially in the AFC East, where the three teams they're in the division with are a little bit more interesting for various reasons. The bills obviously are winning the division every
Starting point is 00:07:43 year. The dolphins are a bit of a hot mess with this new hot head coach who's like offense kind of imploded on him. We don't know what's going to go on with Tua. They have to fix their defense, but McDaniels is clearly a guy that like everybody wants to continue to watch and like hear from. And the Jets are as per usual, a spectacle, you know, you can say what you want And the Jets are, as per usual, a spectacle. You can say what you want about the Jets being inept, but they had a better record than the Patriots this year. And they've got Aaron Rodgers making everything constantly a news cycle talking point. So the sense I get is that this was really cool and they had a good run of discussing the hire. And I do think that they're very interested to see what Gerard Mayo does on a
Starting point is 00:08:26 football level. But as far as a team that people are nationally interested in, they're going to have to do a little bit more before people care what the Patriots are doing in 2024, as far as like on the field, like whether they're going to be a meaningful or relevant team to the landscape. Yeah. Very good point. And I'm glad that you mentioned the sociological impact as well, folks, because as you can see, we are going to discuss that a little bit in depth. We haven't had a chance to yet to this point on locked on Patriots, but Tanya and I will get into that in just a moment. But from a pure football standpoint,
Starting point is 00:09:00 when it comes to the national narrative surrounding Gerard Tyer. This could actually work to his advantage for the reasons that you outlined. The Buffalo Bills are still considered the class of the division. They won the division, even though the Miami Dolphins started off strong and looked like they were going to overtake Buffalo in their endeavors to win the AFC East. Buffalo still was standing at the end, and they're playing this weekend. Miami is not, but Miami is still a formidable team with a lot of star power on both sides of the ball and a head coach that seems to be able to push the right buttons when he needs to so they're going to be uh in the forefront when it comes to next season and beyond the jets will be as well for the reasons
Starting point is 00:09:40 that you stated aaron rogers automatically is going to raise the expectations of that team over the offseason, and you're going to start to see them return to national consideration. I don't necessarily believe they're going to be the Super Bowl contenders that everybody thought they were going to be heading into 2023, but Rodgers definitely gives them much more of a puncher's chance than they had in 2023 under Zach Wilson and not at all when it comes to the quarterbacks that were tried in New York this year. New England's kind of laying in the weeds right now. Gerard Mayo used the Gardner analogy earlier this week in saying, we're just planting seeds right now. We're not on the watering stage yet. So maybe the lack of
Starting point is 00:10:22 national attention being paid to him from a football standpoint may be a good thing because it's going to allow Gerrard to build his own style, craft the team in his own image, and then move forward with the personnel and the players on the field believe he has the X's and O's savvy to be able to make this team successful, maybe quicker than Patriots fans hope, but I do caution patience. This is a rookie head coach. He does deserve at least that consideration, folks, and give him time to do what he needs to do, but Tanya, I think you're absolutely right on the money when it comes to the national narrative, and who knows, folks? maybe it will work to the Patriots' advantage. Patriots fans, I hope that you are enjoying the wisdom and counsel of my guest today, Tanya Rae Fox of FS1,
Starting point is 00:11:12 who has provided some unique insight on the national perspective of Gerard Mayo as the head coach of the New England Patriots. But Gerard's hiring is not only intriguing from a football standpoint. His standing as the first African-American head coach in Patriots history means a great deal to him. He said so in his introductory press conference.
Starting point is 00:11:31 And folks, it is culturally significant. When we continue here on Locked On Patriots, Tanya and I will weigh in on the sociological impact of Gerard's hiring, as well as the succession plan put into place by the Crafts to ensure that they gut their guy in Gerard's hiring, as well as the succession plan put into place by the Crafts to ensure that they gut their guy in Gerard Mayo. All that and more when this episode of the Locked On Patriots podcast continues, a proud part of the Locked On Podcast Network, your team every day.
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Starting point is 00:13:15 already giving a ton of wisdom and counsel when it comes to the national perception of Gerard Mayo's hiring. Tanya, in the previous segment, we talked about what this hiring means from a Patriots football standpoint, where other teams or where maybe some of the other media markets are viewing the Patriots in the Pantheon in the NFL. All well and good that the Pats now are moving forward into a new era, but again, a 4-13 team is not going to get the other team's attention, like you said, withoutth head coach in team history, but also the first African-American coach in team history. Gerard has never shied away from the subject of racism. He's never shied away from his race playing an important part in who he is and shaping the type of coach and the type of man
Starting point is 00:14:21 he has become. He said very matter-of-factly that being the first African-American coach, the first Black coach in the history of the New England Patriots organization definitely means a lot to him. Tanya, from a national standpoint, how is the hiring of Gerard Mayo being received? What type of impact could it have socially when it comes to the NFL and the brand it's trying to purport, especially the way Gerard's hiring was handled with regard to the Rooney rule being subverted through this, naming him the heir, signing this contract, doing the whole thing. and essentially he's saying this is actually it's this uh i mean it's an old school mentality genuinely to bring up your the successor take the guy who the owner loves who the fans love who knows like you know the system or whatever and promote this young guy that you have sort of attached all your hopes and dreams onto is not actually very forward thinking at all. It's actually very safe, but this time it's a black man. And that is something that we
Starting point is 00:15:52 don't see very often, even with the black head coaches who are hired in the NFL. Um, there's a Rooney rule for a reason because there are very all like people aren't promoting their black coaches from within. So this, you know, whether you like the Rooney rule or not, or you feel like there's a better way to do it. One thing that's not happening very often is getting the good old boy promotion through the ranks. You're a guy who came up and, you know,
Starting point is 00:16:17 became the golden boy in the organization. That's very often not a black head coach. And so that is kind of revolutionary. So in that way, Kraft is sort of moving the needle with an old school approach to finding the successor. Kraft said point blank, I wish I had hired Bill Belichick after 1990. When Bill Parcells left, I wish I had kept Belichick and not second guessed myself. I'm not going to make the same mistake, right?
Starting point is 00:16:41 So he's admitting he's had this philosophy to hiring his next head coach since the 1990s, you know, and that's, and we've seen it a lot. So I really, like, it's a very interesting, um, T it's, it's hard to necessarily grab onto because on one hand you want, uh, you want coaches getting opportunities to interview, right? Like you want that. But on the other hand, you also want black coaches getting the same opportunities that white coaches get or coaches, any coach of color getting the same opportunity that white coaches get within their organizations to prove themselves, to come up through the ranks. That's been a huge thing. That's why the coaches who do create diverse staffs and give their staffs opportunity to grow and get out there and interview is such
Starting point is 00:17:25 a big deal. And so I think part two of that plan will be Gerard Mayo being that guy to create these diverse staffs that give other players opportunities. And, you know, so there's, it's a, it's a twofold thing as far as I'm concerned is, you know, it just so happens that Mayo was a bit of the Nepo baby. Is that a bad thing? I don't think so. Because I mean, the only, these are slow structural changes. Let's not make any mistakes here. This is like a deep structural institutional thing. The NFL has institutional structural racism built into it. The way to move past it is to start making those structures, um, you know, include other people before we, you know, so those people can change the structures in general. Right. And to me, that's a good thing. I am a white person,
Starting point is 00:18:19 so I'm perfectly happy to be told, eh, this is why I find this approach problematic. But so far I've seen generally across the board that it's been received pretty well. Like, hey, you know, that Mayo was, he was tabbed as the next guy. And it's a good sign that Mayo is not only a former player um not only a black player um but a player who's outspoken about what he intends to do in terms of uh diversity and um promoting uh diversity within the organization so you know it by and large there's definitely a sense that this is a step in the right direction for breaking down a little more of those walls that haven't been broken down by the Rooney Rule at all. Very good point. And I've seen this tweeted out quite often. And to be honest with you, I completely agree with the assessment that
Starting point is 00:19:15 in its practice, in its theory, the Rooney Rule is designed to promote greater equality, greater inclusion. It doesn't always mean that it's carried out in the same fashion. It can be interpreted in one way, but in terms of it being carried out, it doesn't always live up to its intentions in practice. By Robert Kraft doing what he did and putting that into effect, I think you make an excellent point that this is not necessarily so forward-thinking. It is actually very smart business when you think about promoting your homegrown talent from within and wanting to maintain a level of continuity, even when you have to change hands.
Starting point is 00:19:53 And I spoke about this a little bit yesterday here on Locked On Patriots. When it comes to Gerard Mayo kind of moving into a new era, there's still a lot of Patriot way and Bill Belichick in philosophy left in him. And that's a good thing. Folks, Gerard may have a different way of a different mannerism of being able to reach his players,
Starting point is 00:20:11 the media, reach his fellow coaches and even ownership. And I think that voice is definitely a good one to be heard. But at the same time, there's also a work ethic that's going to remain intact. And because he does have that base here from Robert Kraft, from Bill Belichick, I think it gives him the heads up on the competition to be able to- Yeah, let's not forget that his teammates used to call him Gerard Belichick.
Starting point is 00:20:33 Absolutely. I know he's grown a lot since then. And he is a full grown adult man who had a business career. And you can see that he's changed his philosophies, but I don't care who you are. I know, I know the things that are in me that my mom gave me, no matter what I did, like there's some stuff I do that I can't help. It's just in me. It's just who I am now. It's, you know, you got your familial ties. Gerard's always going to have a little bit of that Belichick Patriot way in him and, um, and the good stuff. I think it's going to be the good stuff. I do. Absolutely. And I think you make a great point about it being a little bit more progressive when you look at it through the lens
Starting point is 00:21:08 of Gerard being the first African-American coach in Patriots history and receiving this type of treatment. It definitely does help to break down some walls and really, I think, illuminate a topic that is very difficult for some to broach. And understandably so, but it's also necessary to broach. And I think that's where Gerard's comments that I've seen a lot taken out of context when it comes to the thrust of what he had to say in that press conference. I think he was very pointed in his message about learning that seeing people in a different light doesn't necessarily mean you see them in a negative light. It's about knocking down the negativity, not knocking down the negativity, knocking down the difference, knocking down
Starting point is 00:21:46 the negativity, and when you do that, that allows you to move forward. Patriots fans, I always enjoy absorbing the wisdom and counsel of my good friend, Tanya Ray Fox of FS1 and the Almost Shameless podcast, and I hope you are too. But before we wrap up today's
Starting point is 00:22:02 show, we're going to take one last ride in that Belichickian time machine show, we're going to take one last ride in that Belichickian time machine, and we're going to reminisce on the 24-year run of head coach Bill Belichick. Yes, folks, I understand. It's time to move on, but not before sharing our favorite Bill Belichick memory with all of you everydayers out there, and of course, to our new listeners as well. When we return, we're taking it home one last time for the now former HC of the NEP. When this episode of the Locked On Patriots podcast continues,
Starting point is 00:22:31 a proud part of the Locked On Podcast Network, your team every day. Patriots fans, thank you so much for joining us here today on Locked On Patriots, and I am honored and humbled as always to be joined by my good friend and valued colleague in the media, Tanya Ray Fox of FS1, already breaking the wisdom and counsel meter off when it comes to the hiring of Gerard Mayo from a national perspective, as well as the sociological impact of hiring the first African American coach in New England Patriots history. But Tanya, you and I both have been experiencing a lot of bittersweet feelings lately, I know. Seeing Bill Belichick leave after
Starting point is 00:23:11 24 years of excellence, and the majority of that time, folks, was indeed excellence, is not easy to take. Six Super Bowl titles, nine conference championships, nine trips to the Super Bowl. You're not going to catch lightning in a bottle like that again. There were some moments that were frustrating. I know there were some moments that are polarizing among the fan base, but there were a lot of good moments as well when it comes to Bill Belichick. As you look back in retrospect now, whether he's headed to the Atlanta Falcons, folks at the time were recording this, Bill Belichick has not been introduced as head coach there yet, but it's possible. But no matter where Bill ends up, he's going to be on a different sideline next year, wearing a different
Starting point is 00:23:54 cutoff hoodie, and it's going to look weird. But at the same time, when you look at Bill Belichick and you think of all the great memories that have happened throughout New England, if you had to pick out one, and I'm sorry to put you on this hot seat, but I'm going to do it anyway. What would it be? What's your lasting memory of Bill Belichick as head coach of the New England Patriots? Well, I'm just going to be a little weird. I'm going to be a little weird. Everybody's got their favorite moments on the field. Everybody's got their favorite moment after the Super Bowl bite from a press conference,
Starting point is 00:24:26 whatever. And I'm with you. I've got all of those. But the thing that gave me a different view on who Bill Belichick is for the first time really ever, he was hired when I was in middle school. So to me, Bill Belichick was how all NFL coaches are. I didn't have a concept that wasn't wasn't like the way everybody acted until, you know, the undefeated season and whatever was the NFL films of football life. And, um, that was, you know, that was unique. It was, it was years ago
Starting point is 00:25:13 now. It was a long time ago now. And we have so, so, so many of these like behind the scenes documentaries. And because of social media, we get deep insights into, um, coaches and players that we never did back then. And that, you know, those, you know, I guess I'm kind of cheating, but the behind the scenes of his meetings with Tom Brady and the Randy Moss inviting him to the Halloween party, these were things that were two sides of like the same Belichick coin of like, this is a guy who the players are kind of afraid of. And then also this is a guy who is incredibly collaborative and actually is trying to connect with his players. And I'd never seen that side of him. He was so, so, so protective of his, um, of his relationship with the players, you know, and they were, because they were Belichick into
Starting point is 00:26:03 being quiet at the podium. Um, we didn't fully get it. Like, I don't even remember. You can correct me if I'm wrong. I don't even think we knew he was having those meetings with Brady until this came out. So that is like, I know it's not an on the field thing, but it so much gave me a sense of how little we really understand what's going on behind the scenes with these coaches, especially coaches as quiet as Belichick and made me reevaluate some of the criticisms even back then that people had of Bill Belichick. And I think it started to,
Starting point is 00:26:35 it started to create the sort of defensiveness of Bill Belichick, the coach, Bill Belichick, the enigma that I've grown into over the course of the last like 10 years or whatever. I love it. I love that you're thinking off the field as well, because that's actually the memory that I'm going to share. Earlier this week, I talked about Bill Belichick on the field and imparting his wisdom and his counsel to his players and getting in there and showing them how to throw a block and snapping the ball during practice. I'm going to miss seeing that, because there's a love for
Starting point is 00:27:08 football that Bill Belichick has that I've never seen in anyone before. And bottom line, folks, I think Tanya articulated this perfectly. Watch a football life. You'll see how much Bill Belichick loves the game of football. But my favorite Bill memory is going back to Super Bowl 52. And a lot of you out there are going to groan at that because i know the outcome of super bowl 52 yes the patriots lost the eagles but it was when bill belichick got off the plane in minnesota and he's wearing a black fedora well i had a ball with that you can guarantee i even tweeted it out folks go back and take a look i guarantee the tweet's still there um and i called him Don Belichick getting off the plane in Minnesota and going reporting for business and taking care. He's
Starting point is 00:27:49 going to settle all affairs. I didn't know at the time that it was his father's hat. He revealed that later that night on opening night with all of the media present. And it was a moment where I finally connected with Bill Belichick, not on a personal level, folks, but just on a wavelength. And I understood that moment. I understood why he wanted to wear his dad's hat. And his official quote when he was asked about it during media night, and he said, this was my dad's hat. I thought I'd just toss that one on today. Felt good about wearing it.
Starting point is 00:28:19 Minnesota's a good place to have a hat. So it did the trick. I lost my father at a young age and Bill had his father for a few more years than I had mine, but any child that's lost a parent, Tanya, and I know you can talk about this from personal experience, wearing something of theirs or holding something of theirs gives you a sense of them still being with you. That always is a way to keep them with you. And Bill Belichick wearing his dad's hat that night, going into Minnesota, going into a Super Bowl game that a lot of people expected
Starting point is 00:28:50 them to win, reminded me of me wearing my dad's watch to a big meeting or a big press conference. I do that. And I do it in that way, not because it's a great timepiece, not because I look at it and I go, wow, my dad left me. It's not an expensive timepiece, folks, but it was my dad's and he wore it almost every day. And it still runs perfectly well to this day. And I still wear it on special occasions. So the fact that Bill Belichick grabbed his dad's hat on a special occasion and thought that it was the right thing to do, that's what I did.
Starting point is 00:29:20 I thought it was the right thing to do as well whenever I wear my father's watch. So it's a father-son thing coach i completely understand and i hope you took that hat with you to whatever destination you're going to uh because you wear it well as your dad wore it well and hopefully someday i'll be fortunate enough for people to say you wore your dad's watch just as well as he did that'd be the greatest compliment that i can receive and to me that's my favorite memory of bill belichick in New England. And the moment that I really connected. Mike, are you serious? Are you, you're over here. You're
Starting point is 00:29:48 going to try to make me cry on a Friday morning. What kind of menace have you become? That was lovely. And I love that you shared that story. And I agree that there, you know, that the, his relationship with his dad and why he does what he does. It's so, it genuinely is so deep into who he is and in his core, we saw so much of it in the NFL 100. I hope people don't forget how incredible it is to have somebody who loves the game that much still in the game. I hope they don't forget that because it is a huge deal. And the impact that you just described,
Starting point is 00:30:19 the familial impact, the, the, the impact on the game, it's big. And it's, it means a lot to us for a reason, 24 years with the same coach, people don't get that. People don't get that, you know, very often
Starting point is 00:30:31 if ever. So, um, I think it's cool that we're able to share these things. And I think, um, you know, when I shared my story on social media, people very much related to it. And I think people will relate to everything that you just said. And I think it's lovely. And I'm really glad to hear that other people are feeling that. And I know, I know that your listeners are going to absolutely adore that story. Oh, absolutely. And likewise, I think your story was amazing as well. And I think it's interesting that we connected with the emotion of Bill Belichick because it's the one thing I don't think he gets enough credit for. You know, everybody's going to talk about the diabolical manipulator and the coach on
Starting point is 00:31:05 the field and, you know, the ruthless competitor and the guy that benign brain picked everyone he ever talked football with. But the emotional side of Bill Belichick does exist, folks. And for those of us in the media that were lucky enough to see it, and for those in the New England region that really got a chance to get to know him a little bit, I think it's a part that really needs to be told and a story that deserves to be told. And hopefully Patriots fans will connect with Gerard Mayo in the same way. And 25 years from now, you know, our descendants will be sitting here talking about
Starting point is 00:31:34 their connection with Gerard in the future, and maybe hopefully celebrating a few Lombardi trophies of their own. So Tanya, this was a blast. Thank you so much for letting me share that moment with you and with all of you out there. And thank you for sharing all of your candor as well. And of course, your insight and your wisdom and counsel. Second to none, my friend. Before I let you go, please let everyone know where they can find you, interact with you on social media and what you have coming down the pike from FS1. The great pen, the great voice of tiny ray fox yes um so always on social media tiny ray fox and obviously threads and instagram tiny ray underscore fox um lots of tiktok stuff i'll have some tiktok lives coming up um some playoff tiktok lives you're gonna we're gonna do some fun over
Starting point is 00:32:18 there so if you do that um head over there uh we also have Almost Shameless. The archives are all there. We're also doing new episodes soon. There's Almost Shameless Shorts on Instagram, like, you know, all kinds of Almost Shameless content for you to catch up on. Do that. And that's my podcast for those. I think everybody knows that by now. I don't know how many new listeners we have, but that's my podcast. And yeah. And then FS1. I mean, I'm behind the scenes running, running the show. No, I'm not running the show, but, um, we are always doing, you know, we're, if, if you've got, if you've got some good, um, Bella check tape, you see any good Bella check takes or, uh, Patriots Gerard Mayo takes on Fox sports one, I'm going to take credit for them.
Starting point is 00:32:59 Um, they are not mine, but I will be taking credit for them. So if you want to throw, you know, if you want to throw the comments underneath, wow, this was a great thought by Tanya Ray Fox. I'm sure all the talent will really appreciate it. No, but tune into those shows. We're always trying to put out fun, new content. I think we're doing a really good job. So there you go.
Starting point is 00:33:17 That's, that's a lot. I hope you guys got, I didn't mean to like throw all that at you, but we're busy. It's football season. It's almost done. And I need to capitalize on the fact that it's still busy season for me. So tune into all of that and come chat with me on TikTok live. If you follow me, you'll get updates about when I'm going live. So just remember that. Absolutely folks. Whenever Tanya puts voice to microphone, pen to paper, or behind the scenes knowledge into practice out there on the big screen, folks absorb it all. You will be
Starting point is 00:33:42 more informed. You will be entertained, and what more can you ask for? And I thank you for joining me here today, my friend. It's always my pleasure to share the microphone with you. And folks, thank you, all of you, for taking time out of your busy schedule this week to join us on Locked On Patriots. We'll be back here on Monday with our big green
Starting point is 00:34:00 friend, Thomas Murphy, and we're going to open up the mailbag. Locked On Patriots Mailbag Monday is back so get those questions in over the weekend. In the meantime I thank my good friend Tanya Ray Fox for her wisdom, her counsel, her insight and her candor on today's episode and I thank each and every one of you for being
Starting point is 00:34:16 everydayers, valued everydayers right here on Locked on Patriots. On behalf of Tanya Ray, I'm Mike Debate reminding you all to stay safe and to stay well and to be the change you wish to see in the world have a great day a great weekend everyone and we'll see you back here again on Monday on Locked on Patriots

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