Bill Belichick responds to Demaryius Thomas ripping Patriots

Demaryius Thomas feels that Bill Belichick misled him during the veteran receiver’s brief time with the New England Patriots, but that is not the way Belichick remembers it.

Thomas unloaded on the Patriots this week and said signing with them turned out to be a “waste of time.” He said he was told his spot on the regular season roster would be safe after New England released him initially, so he stuck around and re-signed with the team. That was before Antonio Brown was cut by the Oakland Raiders, which changed things and made Thomas the odd man out.

While speaking with reporters on Thursday, Belichick acknowledged that the circumstances surrounding Thomas changed but said he “felt like I was always truthful with him.”

Belichick responds to Jets WR Demaryius Thomas' comments pic.twitter.com/Q7XDQpzqmE

— James Palmer (@JamesPalmerTV) October 17, 2019

Thomas has been around long enough to know that the NFL is a business. It’s certainly possible — if not probable — that the Patriots had every intention of keeping him around until Brown became available. No one could have predicted that one of the best wide receivers in football would suddenly become a free agent and want to sign with New England, so the Patriots felt they could not pass up the opportunity.

If Thomas wants to, he can take pleasure in the way the Brown signing turned out for the Patriots. However, the implication that the Patriots should have kept their word no matter what is unrealistic. That’s not how professional sports work.