When news of Patriots players opting out of the 2020 season, a list that includes key starters Dont’a Hightower, Patrick Chung and Marcus Cannon, started to flood Twitter, a lot of NFL fans jumped to the same conclusion: This is some evil scheme devised by Bill Belichick.
Fans can be irrational and they’re just making jokes on the internet so we can forgive them for buying into wild conspiracy theories. But how about actual NFL executives? At least one of them seems to think that Belichick has influenced these players into opting out for the season, based on a tweet from ESPN’s Adam Schefter.
Actual text exchange with an NFL executive today after a sixth Patriot opted out:
Him: “You know Bill is masterminding all of this somehow.”
Me: “For what reason?”
Him: “I don’t know! That’s why he is who he is!”
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) July 28, 2020
Belichick has the entire NFL shook. Every move he makes — or, in this case, doesn’t make — has teams everywhere overthinking things and convincing themselves there is some galaxy brain thinking behind it.
Maybe, just maybe, Hightower and Chung are opting out because they have (or will have) newborns to look after and to keep safe during a pandemic.
A message from #Patriots LB Dont'a Hightower, one of the highest profile players opting out amid the Coronavirus: “Me and my fiancée are just more concerned with the health of our family than football — especially the new addition to our family.”
Hightower has a 2-week-old son.
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) July 28, 2020
Maybe, and I’m just spit-balling now, Cannon is opting out because he’s a cancer survivor and considered high risk for COVID-19. None of these players should need those excuses to justify opting out. Just wanting to protect themselves and their families from a disease that ravages the body should be enough of a reason. But, no, that can’t be it! Belichick is involved!
Belichick built this Patriots dynasty by prioritizing the acquisition of smart players. The most logical explanation here is that a handful of those smart players looked at the data, considered how this country is handling the pandemic and came to the conclusion that playing any sport outside of a bubble just isn’t plausible or safe.
These conspiracy theories downplay the seriousness of the situation. Between now and the August 3 deadline for opting out, NFL players will be making a decision that could impact not only their lives but also the lives of their families. This isn’t about their love of football or finding some competitive edge down the line. It’s about staying safe.
That will become apparent when the list of players — and not just Patriots players — opting out grows longer and longer between now and August 3. New England won’t be the only team to lose key players.