The Patriots may not have to run an extensive coaching search to find Bill Belichick’s replacement — not with linebackers coach Jerod Mayo already in the building, Conor Ryan of the Boston Globe reports. 

According to NFL Media’s Ian Rapoport, Mayo stands as a “strong candidate” to take the reins of the Patriots in 2024, with the former All-Pro’s current contractual situation in New England potentially paving the way for an easier hiring process for the team.

“If he is the choice, the [Patriots] could simply hire him,” Rapoport posted on X Thursday night. “No need to go through the lengthy hiring process — they established a firm, contractual succession plan in a prior contract & communicated it to the NFL.”

Rapoport added that a succession plan spelled out through a coaching contract is not anything new in the NFL, with the Seahawks following a similar script before hiring Jim Mora and the Colts doing the same with Jim Caldwell.

NFL rules and regulations often require weeks of compliance for teams as they assess their options for a new head coach. But if Robert Kraft and the Patriots tab Mayo as the next man up after Belichick, New England has the means of wrapping up this coaching search in short order.

But if New England opts to look outside the organization at other rumored coaching candidates like Mike Vrabel, the Patriots would have to adhere to the NFL’s hiring policy.

Last January, the Patriots announced in a team release that it began “contract extension discussions with Jerod Mayo that would keep him with the team long-term.” With Mayo viewed as a top head-coaching candidate last offseason, a contractual succession plan could have been an enticing way to keep him in New England for the foreseeable future.  

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