![]() The Super Bowl XLIX hero became a Super Bowl LII goat.īutler didn’t shy away from using the Super Bowl snub for motivation this offseason. Butler left the locker room in a huff, made a brief comment to ESPN about how he would have been able to help the Patriots, and vanished from New England forever. He didn’t, though, as he played just one snap on the punt team all game. He played 98 percent of the snaps all season. I respect because he said, ‘I did what I did, and I made the decision that I thought was best for the team.’ ”īutler thought the same thing would happen in the Super Bowl. “Nobody took a chance on Malcolm Butler, so you’ve got to be grateful for that. “At the end of the day, you have to give Bill Belichick, Robert Kraft, and those guys a lot of credit,” said Johnny Jackson, Butler’s trainer and mentor since his college days at West Alabama. Everyone in Butler’s inner circle remains grateful to the Patriots and the opportunity they gave Butler. I’ve got nothing but respect for those guys.” It didn’t end the right way, but I’m a Tennessee Titan, I have moved on from that. Those people were good to me while I was there. “All that would do is cause more confusion and things like that. “That could do nothing but mess myself up, bro,” Butler said on Thursday, following a training camp practice. All offseason, he has not said a bad word about the Patriots. He has had every opportunity to rip Bill Belichick for the decision to bench him, or to rip the Patriots’ organization for embarrassing him and potentially torpedoing his free agent value.īut Butler doesn’t. Stan Grossfeld/Globe staffīutler’s approach has been to take the high road. Quandre Diggs, who played most of last season at the nickel cornerback spot before switching to safety late in the season, offers position versatility - safety Tavon Wilson also is a free agent, though he previously played for Patricia with the Patriots and could return on a short-term deal - and general manager Bob Quinn indicated the Lions will look to fill some of their holes in the secondary internally.īoth Teez Tabor and Jamal Agnew played sparingly in the secondary as rookies, but are in line for bigger roles in 2018.Malcolm Butler (left) played four seasons for the Patriots, but only one snap in Super Bowl LII. The Lions return Pro Bowl cornerback Darius Slay coming off a career-high eight-interception season, but have other vacancies in the secondary with starter Nevin Lawson and top backup DJ Hayden scheduled to become free agents. ![]() ![]() Patricia explained the decision to bench Butler after the game as being about "the packages that we had in and the guys that we had out there for the matchups that we saw."īutler told ESPN the Patriots "gave up on me."īutler is expected to leave New England when free agency opens March 14, and Patricia would not speculate Wednesday whether the Lions would be in the mix for Butler given his handling of the cornerback in the Super Bowl. Watch: Matt Patricia breaks down Butler's famous Super Bowl INT And that’s really all I’m going to say about Malcolm."īutler, the hero of the Patriots' Super Bowl XLIX win over the Seattle Seahawks for his goal line interception of Russell Wilson, was an every-down player for New England in the regular season and playoffs, but was weirdly absent from the team's gameplan in this year's Super Bowl. I want to make sure that he does everything to the best and I hope the best for him. He’s like all my players, he’s like one of my sons. ![]() "I would characterize my relationship with Malcolm as extremely strong," Patricia said Wednesday at the NFL combine. "I love Malcolm a lot. The new Lions coach, however, did say his relationship with Butler was and is close. Patricia declined to say if he had any regrets about how he handled Butler in the New England Patriots' Super Bowl LII loss to the Philadelphia Eagles, when Butler did not play a defensive snap despite starting 15 regular-season games and the previous two playoff games.Īt NFL combine, time ticking on Bob Quinn's draft record INDIANAPOLIS - Detroit Lions coach Matt Patricia said he has a strong relationship with Malcolm Butler despite the cornerback's benching in the Super Bowl.īut whether that means the Lions will be players for Butler in free agency next month is another story. Watch Video: 10 free agents who may interest Detroit Lions
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