Curran: Krafts owe it’ to Patriots to scrutinize Van Pelt, coaches originally appeared on NBC Sports Boston
Are New England Patriots team owner Robert Kraft and president Jonathan Kraft doing necessary due diligence, or are they overstepping their bounds?
That’s been a topic of conversation this past week after Sports Illustrated’s Albert Breer reported last Sunday on Patriots Pregame Live that the Krafts have consulted people outside the organization about the best way for the team to develop rookie quarterback Drake Maye.
That consultation, Breer noted, likely will include a post-season evaluation of offensive coordinator Alex Van Pelt to determine if he’s the best fit for Maye going forward.
You could argue Breer’s report somewhat undermines Van Pelt, head coach Jerod Mayo and the coaching staff if they believe the Krafts don’t fully trust them to do their jobs. But as our Patriots Insider Tom E. Curran noted Sunday on Patriots Pregame Live, this is what the Krafts have to do with a player as talented as Maye in the building.
“The Krafts owe it to the organization, to the region, to themselves, to the entire team to scrutinize everything every single day they go into that office — especially with their one elite player on the roster,” Curran said. “They should go in every day and say, ‘Are we doing the best job for Drake Maye?’
“Obviously, that initially goes to Alex Van Pelt, and the perception is it’s Alex Van Pelt in the crosshairs. (But) it could be (the Krafts) going in and saying, ‘Do we need to boost our offensive line coaching? Do we need to boost our wide receivers coaches? Do we have enough of the right tenor around Drake Maye? Is Jerod doing a good enough job holding feet to the fire? What about Eliot Wolf? What about Matt Groh? Why are we releasing second-round picks have only been on the team for three years?
“So yes, Van Pelt is the default, but I think it has to be everything, and I don’t blame the Krafts at all.”
New England brought in a completely new coaching staff after Bill Belichick’s departure, with Van Pelt and DeMarcus Covington installed as first-year coordinators for a first-year coach in Mayo. While that staff has endured some growing pains — particularly with the wide receivers and position coach Tyler Hughes — the team has seen an increased level of buy-in after going 2-1 over the past three weeks.
If the Patriots can continue that momentum through the rest of the season, perhaps this group stays intact in 2025 and beyond. But the stakes are high with a player as talented as Maye, so expect the Krafts to do a close evaluation across the board this offseason.
Check out the video player above for more from Curran.