Patriots Notebook: Team starting to fill out coaching staff

We're now getting a pretty good idea as to what the New England coaching staff will look like in 2019.



Former Patriots' linebacker Jerod Mayo announced Wednesday on Instagram he was joining the New England coaching staff for the 2019 season in an undefined capacity. Mayo, a first-round pick of the Patriots in 2008, was a player for New England for eight seasons. He becomes the second member of the Mayo family to become a part of the Patriots' coaching staff -- his brother Deron was an assistant strength and conditioning coach with the team last year.

That news comes on the heels of a report that Bob Fraser has been added to the coaching staff, as well. An ally of new defensive coordinator Greg Schiano, Fraser was with Schiano at Rutgers and Ohio State, and he also served as the linebackers coach with Tampa Bay from 2012-13. It's not known what sort of role Fraser will have on the New England staff, but given their background, I'd expect both Fraser and Mayo to be involved on defense. While titles can sometimes be meaningless around Foxborough, it's worth noting New England doesn't have a linebackers or cornerbacks coach at this point on the masthead.

In other news, the retirement of free-agent receiver Jordy Nelson -- announced on Twitter by his former teammate James Jones -- means the Patriots can cross another possibility off their list. According to reports, Nelson had drawn the interest of a handful of teams earlier this offseason, including New England. In all likelihood, this strengthens the idea the Patriots will seek more depth at the receiver position in the draft or via trade at a later point this offseason.