In the weeks that have followed Super Bowl LII, there has yet to be any clarity concerning why New England Patriots head coach Bill Belichick made the decision to bench former Pro Bowl cornerback Malcolm Butler for the contest. It is a move that still baffles many within the organization and around the league.
This entire situation hasn't reached a true resolution as Butler himself has no clear reasoning as to why he was relegated to the bench. Former Patriots wide receiver Danny Amendola is the latest to weigh in stating that he is still a bit bothered by Belichick's decision, according to Mike Reiss of ESPN.
Amendola also revealed that he sensed his Patriots teammates shared his feelings of being hurt by the Butler decision.
“Yeah, I did, honestly. Nobody really got an explanation for it. He's a brother of ours. He was a brother of ours that year. And I hate to see a guy who worked so hard throughout the season not get a chance to play in the biggest game of the year and really get no explanation for it. With that said, I don't know how the business aspect went into that decision. I don't know how the personal aspect went into that decision between him and Bill. But as a friend, I would have loved to see him on the field that day.”
There is no certainty that Butler's presence would have changed the game, but it would have helped provide stability in the secondary. In the Super Bowl, the Philadelphia Eagles torched the Patriots secondary with the lone bright spot being the play of cornerback Stephon Gilmore.
The presence of Butler could have provided the team with solid play on the outside that could have made it more difficult Nick Foles to throw the ball down the field. The Eagles had benefited greatly in the game with their big-play ability that helped them put together scoring drives throughout the contest.
Butler had developed into one of their primary defensive backs that made him one of the more reliable players on that side of the ball. The lack of reasoning from the coaches to the players since then is quite puzzling and may create a rift in the locker room because of it. The fact that Amendola has become vocal about it speaks volumes about what many players on the team feel about the entire situation.
Ultimately, it's something that there may never be a direct clear-cut reason to what Belichick went route, but this is something that greatly impacted the organization.
Follow Us
Subscribe