A day after the Patriots announced that they would be mutually parting ways with former head coach Bill Belichick, owner Robert Kraft tapped Jerod Mayo in to take his place.
The move, at the time, appeared sudden. Kraft, however, revealed that the decision had been years in the making.
Appearing on “The Shop” talk show Thursday, Kraft said the two initially grew close during one of the team’s annual mission trips to Israel.
“There were about 15 or 18 players and I watched how Jerod worked with them and I said ‘that’s my next head coach,’” he said about the former Patriots player and linebackers coach.