Patriots coach Bill Belichick addressed the frustrations of New York Jets receiver Demaryius Thomas, who spent preseason and some of the regular season with New England in 2019.
Thomas called his time with the Patriots “a waste of time” in an interview with the New York Daily News. Thomas said folks in New England assured him his standing with the team was solid before trading him to the Jets in a corresponding move with the signing of receiver Antonio Brown.
“Look, Demaryius is a great kid,” Belichick said during a press conference on Thursday. “I have a ton of respect for him. He’s very professional, and he did everything we asked him to do. Our circumstances changed a couple of times in that period leading up to when he was traded. I felt like I was always truthful with him, but things changed and therefore, what I said was not the same as what I had said previously. So it is what it is.”
It seems Thomas doesn’t feel the same way.
“It was insulting, for sure,” Thomas told the Daily News. “Once I got cut (on August 31), I could have just come here (to the Jets) and not stayed there and re-sign. When they re-signed me, I was thinking that I was good. Two weeks later, I was gone. “So, it’s like, ‘Why did I waste my time?’ Because at the end of the day, it was kind of a waste of time for me.”
Thomas never caught a pass with the Patriots. Despite a two-touchdown performance in the fourth preseason game with New England, Belichick cut Thomas at the 53-man deadline. The Patriots brought the veteran receiver back after a few days, and ultimately traded him on Sept. 10. And it’s possible they regret it. After all, Brown is no longer with the team after facing allegations of sexual assault, and New England’s receiving corps are dealing with injuries.
