Former Patriots head coach Bill Belichick finally commented on the state of the Patriots following their 30-13 loss to the 49ers on Sunday afternoon.
Current Patriots head coach Jerod Mayo has emphasized that the team has a plan in place for rookie quarterback Drake Maye, and that’s why the third overall pick is not playing.
Belichick was asked about that plan on ESPN by Pat McAfee.
Here are his full comments:
“I’ll be honest with you, I have no idea what the plan is, so I can’t comment on that,” Belichick said Monday on the “Pat McAfee Show.” “If Mayo says he’s got a plan, then I guess he’s got one, and we’ll have to wait to see what it is. But I’ll say there’s a number of issues there. One is, can’t move the ball and can’t score … 63-yard field goal and then got a touchdown off the fumbled kickoff. But otherwise, had a hard time moving the ball. And I don’t know exactly what the numbers were, but the amount of time that Purdy had to throw was pretty high. I got to think that in terms of the amount of the time before the ball was released had to be the highest in the league or close to it. So think there are some pass-rush issues there. There are some scoring issues.
“But Joey Slye, that was a great addition for them. They got a good kicker and that’s a big upgrade from where we were last year. I’d say there’s some other things that have to be worked out and obviously they got the protection straightened out. That cost them the game against Seattle on the blocked field goal, but we’ll see what the plan is. I have no idea what it is.”
Belichick, who parted ways with the team this offseason, was not asked about the Patriots after Week 1 when they beat the Bengals and started the season 1-0. They’ve since fallen to 1-3 after losses to the Seahawks, Jets and 49ers.
The Patriots also started the season 1-3 under Belichick in 2021, 2022 and 2023.
Belichick’s youngest son, Brian, is still a safeties coach with the Patriots. Belichick’s older son, Steve, is the defensive coordinator at the University of Washington.
Belichick has media roles on McAfee’s show, the “ManningCast,” Underdog, SiriusXM, NFL Films and the 33rd Team.
