Jamie Collins’ return to the New England Patriots made sense — and it didn’t. On one hand, the Patriots linebacker was a second-round draft choice in 2013, as his athleticism and versatility made him a player of interest for Bill Belichick. That said, the Patriots shipped him off in a trade to the Cleveland Browns in 2016, which came as a surprise.
The trade may have been a product of a strained relationship between Collins and the Patriots — and it may have also exacerbated those issues, with Collins showing some frustration when he landed in Cleveland.
Was Collins surprised to see that the Patriots were interested in signing him this offseason?
“I was surprised, but then again, I wasn’t,” Collins said on Thursday after organized team activities on Thursday. “Because like I said, I’m just a free agent, so obviously a lot of teams are going to contact you or whatever. That’s just the business of the game. I’m always surprised no matter what, like I’m surprised right now, being in this position.”
He was asked whether he found the trade surprising in 2016.
“It happened. I don’t live in the past,” Collins said.
And was his relationship with the organization strained afterward?
“It was just a change in destination, man,” he said. “I’m a professional and I’ve got to be professional about the business. Business is business. You can’t get upset. I’m just trying to pick up where I left off and move on.”
Collins said he was pleased to see Dont’a Hightower, one of his good friends. Collins was glad to get to work under new linebackers coach Jerod Mayo, who Collins was also close with during his first stint with the Patriots. Still, a lot has changed. Players and coaches have come and gone — the system has changed. He’s working to catch up to where he was in 2015, when he was one of the team’s best defensive players.
“I’ve got a long ways to go,” Collins said. “There’s a lot of room for improvement.”
