Many would’ve thought former Patriots great Vince Wilfork was in a predicament when the team fired first-year head coach Jerod Mayo and replaced him with Mike Vrabel this week.
Wilfork, who has a close relationship with both coaches, won two Super Bowl тιтles with Vrabel and one with Mayo during his 11 seasons in New England.
All three were Patriots teammates during the 2008 season.
In an interview with The Post, Wilfork said he’s waiting to reach out to Mayo, whose situation was “heartbreaking” because it was handled unfairly by Patriots owner Robert Kraft.
“I’m giving [Mayo] time because it’s heartbreaking and I understand that,” Wilfork, 43, said Tuesday during an event with Tums and DraftKings in New York. “His roots are in Boston, his family, his friendships — it’s all there. So I know it’s pretty tough for him right now, trying to figure out what is he going to do next.
“I’ll give it some time because he’s like a brother to me. Then I’ll reach out to him and we’ll talk and break bread and see what’s next for him. I have no idea what he wants to do now. I’m pretty sure it’s probably a slap in the face, like a punch in the face. It’s a gut punch for him. But part of the game is being a coach and you’re gonna get fired sometimes. Even the greats got fired. It happens but the way it happened, that’s the problem. We’ll see.”
Wilfork, 43, partnered with Tums, which he takes for heartburn, and DraftKings for its Fantasy Football Pool, where players can draft their game-day dishes for free for a chance to win a share of a $40,000 prize through Feb. 9
Mayo, who spent his entire eight-season NFL playing career with New England, coached the Patriots to a 4-13 record this season.
The 38-year-old was hand-picked by Kraft to inherit a depleted roster after the Patriots and Bill Belichick parted ways after 24 seasons and six Super Bowl тιтles last January.
“I just felt that it was unfair for Jerod Mayo to be in the predicament he is because we’re talking about the greatest coach of all time [Bill Belichick] who had a s–tty roster,” Wilfork said, adding that he loves the Kraft family. “And the thing Mayo did do, he found the quarterback [Drake Maye] for this organization.
“I don’t know what happened but it sucks and it wasn’t fair, simple as that. I understand business but give him a fair sH๏τ. I’m not questioning if Vrabel’s the guy or not. I know Vrabel is a hell of a coach and I’m happy for Vrabel and for the organization that they landed him. But facts is facts. It was unfair what they did with Mayo… What’s right is right. This is wrong. It’s part of business I guess but there are ways to do things and this one right here was the not right way they handled it.”
Wilford explained that it’s a business at the end of the day, and said he’s looking forward to seeing what Vrabel can do to turn things around in Foxborough.
“You have to be able to separate it,” said Wilford, who was inducted into the Patriots Hall of Fame in 2022, a year before Vrabel’s induction. “We played together and won a lot of football games together. There is nothing against Vrabel. He’s a hell of a coach and I’m glad New England actually got him… I know what he brings to the table, trust me.”
Kraft and the Patriots introduced Vrabel as the franchise’s 16th head coach on Monday.
The Patriots have the No. 4 pick in the 2025 NFL Draft after a 23-16 victory over the Bills in their season finale, which dropped New England from picking No. 1.
