Why Jerod Mayo doesn’t have an issue with Davon Godchaux’s comments on ‘selfish’ plays

"I'm okay with a player voicing that because that's what I said in the squad meeting."

Patriots coach Jerod Mayo told reporters Wednesday that he is fine with defensive lineman Davon Godchaux’s recent comments on WEEI about teammates making selfish plays during Sunday’s loss to the 49ers.

On Monday, Godchaux told WEEI’s Jones and Keefe that the team needs to a better job of playing together, and that some players did things during the game that weren’t in the team’s best interest.

“We just all got to be on the same page,” Godchaux said. “We got guys — you know, just being honest — we got guys, some guys being kind of selfish.”

“I get it. I mean, we’re down. Guys want to make plays. I get it. But everybody got to play, I’m talking about defense, everybody has to play as 11. And everybody got to sacrifice to do what’s best for the team. I know some guys want to make plays when we’re down, get back in the game. But we got to just keep going as a team and play team defense.”

Mayo had no problem with the comments. In fact, the told the team the same thing himself.

“I’m okay with a player voicing that because that’s what I said in the squad meeting,” Mayo said. “So, everything I say to the players, and I’m not saying it as a secret. We just have to play better together.”

“Especially defensively, look – well, I would say across the board – it takes 11 people to make a big play. I know one person gets all the praise and things like that, but it takes everyone being on the same page. I agree with DG [Davon Godchaux] in regard to some of those plays are selfish plays. That’s exactly what it is.”

Mayo said he is considering whether to bench running back Rhamondre Stevenson over his fumbling issues, and he was asked if he had reached the same point with some of the defensive starters over the way the pass-rush has looked. The Patriots have had a serious issue with setting the edge and keeping quarterbacks in the pocket.

Defensive end Keion White bears some of that responsibility. His situation is different than Stevenson’s, and he’s not the only reason for the Patriots’ issues on the edge, Mayo said. But, there are some things to clean up.

“Look, one thing I’ll say about Keion,” Mayo said. “And once again, if it was something that was happening on a week-to-week basis, like the fumbling with Rhamondre, that’s a little bit different with Keion. I would say as far as the edge is concerned, it’s not just one person. It’s been different people every single week.”

“Look, if you were to take a snapshot – and I think it’s important to remember that we are still early in the season – but Keion has been one of our most impactful players, and we look forward to his continued growth,” Mayo added. “But again, it comes down to execution. It comes down to discipline. It comes down to doing what’s right for the team and not for the individual.”

“I would say, when you go back and look at some of those plays, you think, look, we’re not good on third down,” Mayo continued. “Why? It’s not because we’re not covering guys. It’s because we’re giving the quarterback the chance to get outside the pocket. I think we just need to play better as a team and not as individuals for us to have a good chance at winning games.”

Mayo said he has been surprised by the lack of execution and added that he needs to do a better job of preparing the team.

“I take 100% accountability for that,” Mayo said. “It’s my job to get these guys on the roster ready to go out there and play at a high level. The last couple of weeks, we just have not done that. So, I’ll take that one.”

Godchaux said his comments were aimed at making sure the team is on the same page.

“I’m just not pointing nobody out, we always have to be on the same page that’s really what it is,” Godchaux told Boston.com. “We’re just trying to be on the same page.”