Bill Belichick let himself off the hook this week when speaking about the weaknesses of his 2-5 New England Patriots roster. Belichick is the team’s coach and general manager — and the GM hasn’t been kind to the coach over the last two years.
After a season when the Patriots spent cash (the Antonio Brown signing) and draft picks (the Mohamed Sanu trade) in failed attempts to elevate the offense, New England elected to let Tom Brady walk in 2020 free agency, along with a handful of starters, namely linebackers Kyle Van Noy and Jamie Collins. That left them with an equally inept offense and a new quarterback, Cam Newton. The results in 2020 have not been good, with the Patriots averaging 192 passing yards per game, third-worst in the NFL, and a total of three passing touchdowns, the fewest in the NFL.
When explaining how the Patriots landed in such a bad situation on an appearance on WEEI sports radio, Belichick did something he never does: talk about previous seasons.
“That’s what we did the last five years,” Belichick told WEEI. “We sold out and won three Super Bowls, played in a fourth, and played in an AFC Championship game.
“This year, we had less to work with. It’s not an excuse, it’s just a fact.”