Throughout the last 25 years, Bill Belichick had players vote for team captains, although many believe he would sometimes fudge the ‘vote’ to get certain guys in leadership roles.

Whether he did or didn’t get involved, it’s hard to argue that the Patriots have always had some pretty damn good leaders with the title of ‘captain’ since 2000.

So, with Belichick now gone, how is new head coach Jerod Mayo – who was a captain during his playing career and got the support of his teammates in the vote – handling that decision this year?

I asked him during his pre-practice media availability on Thursday morning and while the process will still be the same, he did offer a unique perspective on the important decision.

“I think it’s always important to allow their peers to vote on captains,” he said. “I don’t want anything to do with it. I know in my head who I think the leaders of the team are. Hopefully, that marries up with what the players say. But, I think the players should have the opportunity to vote on their captains. ”

It’ll be interesting to see how many guys actually get the nod this season, something else Mayo hit on when it comes to the voting process.

“One thing I will say on that, I’ve never been a huge fan of having 10 captains, eight captains or anything like that,” he added. “I don’t know what that number looks like, but it will be up to the players.”