It may not have come up on camera, but there was apparently some very real tension behind the scenes between Robert Kraft and Bill Belichick at Netflix’s roast of Tom Brady.
Julian Edelman and Drew Bledsoe, who both took part in the roast, spoke on the latest episode of Edelman’s “Games With Names” podcast about an awkward backstage moment between Kraft and Belichick. Belichick was holding court and having conversations in the green room, only for Kraft to walk in and interrupt everything.
“As he’s in the middle of a story, Kraft walks in, and you guys all go over to say hi to Kraft,” Bledsoe recalled (8:20 into the video). “And the last man standing is my (brother), and he’s like, well, Bill’s telling a story, and if I leave, then he’s telling the story to nobody, because everybody’s over saying hi to Kraft.”
“The tension in that room, though, could cut f—ing glass,” Edelman said. “I was watching coach, and I tried to give coach a heads up. … I just walked away. I didn’t want to get in there.”
Regardless of how things played out behind the scenes, Kraft and Belichick were able to make nice in front of the cameras later in the roast. It probably doesn’t mean everything is perfect between the two, but they can be civil when they need to be.
The tension between Kraft and Belichick is supposed to have gone back several years, and probably played a role in New England’s decision to move on from Belichick after last season. It also does not help that one report indicated Kraft may have played a role in costing Belichick a head coaching job this offseason.
