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Rob Ninkovich highlights Jerod Mayo’s high-IQ while explaining magnitude of Ja’Whaun Bentley’s injury

Jerod Mayo’s high football IQ helped him become a successful leader of the Patriots’ defense for eight seasons. And it also helped earn him his first head coaching gig as New England’s successor to Bill Belichick.

Rob Ninkovich pointed out yet another example of Mayo’s leadership, while discussing how big of a loss linebacker Ja’Whaun Bentley is to the 2024 Patriots.

Both Mayo and Bentley wore the green dot on their helmets, which signals which player gets communication from the sidelines for play calls. Ninkovich pointed out that when the player with the green dot gets injured, it can sometimes be even more challenging to fill that hole.