The New England Patriots fired coach Jerod Mayo on Sunday after one season, beginning another reboot for the franchise just a year after it parted with longtime coach Bill Belichick.

Owner Robert Kraft announced the firing in a statement shortly after New England closed its 4-13 season with a 23-16 win over the Buffalo Bills.

“After the game I informed Jerod Mayo that he will not be returning as the head coach of the New England Patriots in 2025. For me, personally, it was one of the hardest decisions I have ever made,” Kraft said. “Unfortunately, the trajectory of our team’s performances throughout the season did not ascent as I had hoped.”

A former Patriots linebacker who worked as an assistant under Belichick, Mayo started the season with a strong endorsement from Kraft. But alongside a coaching staff that featured offensive coordinator Alex Van Pelt and first-time defensive coordinator DeMarcus Covington, he struggled to get the most out of a young roster that included rookie quarterback Drake Maye.

The Patriots opened the season with a win at Cincinnati before losing their next six games.

Browns fire OC Dorsey >> The Cleveland Browns have fired offensive coordinator Ken Dorsey and offensive line coach Andy Dickerson following their 3-14 season, a person familiar with the decisions told The Associated Press.

Dorsey and Dickerson were informed of the moves in the aftermath of the team’s 35-10 loss in Baltimore on Saturday, according to the person who spoke to the AP on condition of anonymity because the team hasn’t made an announcement.

Golf

Matsuyama starts with win >> Hideki Matsuyama got the new season off to a smashing start when he broke the PGA Tour record to par for 72 holes by closing with an 8-under 65 for a three-shot victory over Collin Morikawa in The Sentry.

Matsuyama made an 8-foot birdie putt on the par-5 18th hole at Kapalua, lightly pumping his fist in about the only emotion he showed all week. That put him at 35-under 257, breaking by one the 34-under par by Cameron Smith set at Kapalua in 2022.

Matsuyama set another PGA Tour record with that final birdie, his 35th hole at birdie or better for the tournament. Smith in 2022 and Sungjae Im last year held the previous record.

College Football

QB wins Payton award >> Montana State quarterback Tommy Mellott won the Walter Payton Award as the Football Championship Subdivision offensive player of the year, two days before the top-ranked Bobcats face North Dakota State in the title game.

Called Touchdown Tommy, the speedy Mellott edged North Dakota State quarterback Cam Miller and Southern Utah running back Targhee Lambson in voting announced at the FCS Awards Banquet.

The first Montana State winner of the award, Mellott had 147 points, receiving 16 first-place votes. Miller followed with 131 with 14 first-place votes and Lambson had 115 with five first-place votes.

Baseball

Nationals sign Bell >> First baseman Josh Bell and the Washington Nationals finalized a $6 million, one-year contract.

Bell returned to Washington after spending the 2021 season and bulk of 2022 there, hitting .278 with 41 homers, 145 RBIs and 48 doubles in 247 games. He was traded to San Diego with Juan Soto on Aug. 2, 2022, the first of three straight years he was dealt at the trade deadline.

Rugby

Maher makes debut >> U.S. rugby star Ilona Maher made her debut for the Bristol Bears women’s team in front of a record home crowd of 9,240 fans.

But Maher, “ the most followed rugby player on the planet,” could not prevent Bristol from losing 40-17 to defending champion Gloucester-Hartpury in a Premiership Women’s Rugby match.

She came on as a substitute in the 61st minute at Ashton Gate with Bristol trailing 28-10. Maher made her presence felt in a couple of rucks and looked for work off the wing but could make little impact to the overall picture in her 20 minutes on the field.

The previous attendance record for a Bristol women’s home match was 4,101 against Harlequins in May 2022.

Soccer

Liverpool ties >> Amad Diallo’s late equalizer secured a 2-2 draw for Manchester United against Premier League leader Liverpool.

The forward turned home Alejandro Garnacho’s cross in the 80th minute at Anfield after Mohamed Salah’s penalty had looking like giving Liverpool the win.

United led through Lisandro Martinez’s strike in the 52nd, but Cody Gakpo leveled seven minutes later.

Salah fired Liverpool ahead from the spot in the 70th after Matthijs de Ligt handled in the box.

The draw ended United’s four-game losing run in all competitions and moved it up to 13th in the standings.

Skiing

Ljutic wins again >> Croatian skier Zrinka Ljutic made it back-to-back World Cup wins in women’s slalom to take the lead in the standings.

The 20-year-old Ljutic won her first title at Semmering, Austria last week and quickly followed up with her second at Kranjska Gora. Ljutic was joint-fastest with Wendy Holdener in their first run, then 0.16 seconds faster than the Swiss skier in the second.