Former NFL head coach Rex Ryan did not hold back when he eviscerated Bill Belichick and the New England Patriots amid the AFC East team's tumultuous 2023 campaign. For Ryan, the Pats' dynasty was always more about legendary Tom Brady and less about Belichick, an opinion he bluntly expressed recently.
“This team plays like they're exhausted. And the Patriot Way, that's it: It exhausts these kids. And Tom Brady was the only reason you won anyway, all right?” Ryan said during Monday's episode of ESPN's Get Up. “I'm just telling you the difference. Tom Brady was the absolute difference. I said from jump, they would never win again, I said they would never win again when that guy trotted down to Tampa.”
Ryan was a regular victim of Belichick and the Patriots back in his days with the New York Jets and the Buffalo Bills, but he made it clear that it's not the reason behind his criticism.
“And, that is what you’re facing right now. You pick all the players, you do all this. Bill Belichick, greatest in history, I will never dispute that, OK? I had my ass kicked by him a million times. But if you think for a minute that it wasn’t about Tom Brady, you’re absolutely crazy,” Ryan added.
Since Tom Brady left Foxborough in 2019, the Patriots have consistently struggled on the field, opening the door for critics and rivals to pick on Bill Belichick and New England.
The 2023 NFL season is turning out to be the worst for the Pats in the post-Tom Brady era, with the team sporting just two wins through 11 games.
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