Pat McAfee clarifies his remark to Patriots proprietor Robert Kraft on ‘Faculty GameDay’ broadcast

Patriots

McAfee’s feedback had been seen as a touch about Invoice Belichick’s job safety with the Patriots.

Former NFL punter and “Faculty GameDay” panelist Pat McAfee raised loads of eyebrows throughout ESPN’s broadcast forward of Saturday’s Military-Navy Sport at Gillette Stadium.

Throughout an interview section with Patriots proprietor Robert Kraft, McAfee appeared to handle the elephant within the room with the 3-10 Patriots: Invoice Belichick’s job safety.

“We’d wish to win,” Kraft famous when requested about New England’s hopes of regaining the label as a contender. “So, we need to do all the pieces we are able to to get our staff again so we could be profitable once more.”

“I don’t envy your place, what’s about to occur,” McAfee mentioned. “Everyone knows. We don’t need to ask immediately.”

Kraft didn’t reply to McAfee, giving him a handshake because the interview wrapped with the panel.

As anticipated, McAfee’s remark to Kraft and the implied implication about Kraft’s looming choice with Belichick this offseason drew loads of headlines over the weekend.

Talking on Monday throughout his day by day ESPN present, McAfee pushed again towards the discourse surrounding his feedback.

Whereas Kraft and New England’s possession will undoubtedly need to make a number of powerful selections this winter in hopes of rebuilding a damaged roster, McAfee mentioned that his remark shouldn’t be seen as any form of affirmation that Kraft plans to fireside Belichick as soon as the 2023 season wraps.

“On the finish [of the interview], I believe they mentioned, ‘Anyone else have something?’ And I’m like, ‘I don’t envy your place,’ is what I mentioned to [Kraft],” McAfee defined on “The Pat McAfee Present.” “I’m not going to ask the query. It’s not about that. Everyone knows what I’m speaking about. However I don’t envy your place.

“And all people in New England — and I perceive, I suppose, from the New England perspective, why they did this — folks had been saying I ambushed Robert Kraft. I didn’t even ask a query. They mentioned I ambushed him with that, after which we shook palms. They mentioned, ‘Pat simply instructed Robert Kraft that he’s going to fireside Invoice Belichick.’

“I didn’t say that in any respect. What I used to be speaking about, for the primary time in, like, 20 years, is he going to increase Invoice Belichick? Is he going to maneuver on from Invoice Belichick? How concerning the quarterback place? What are you going to do? Like, I don’t envy his place in any respect. He’s the person who owned and operated the best dynasty in sports activities historical past. Essentially the most constant dynasty. He even mentioned it. He mentioned, ‘Invoice’s been with us for twenty-four years.’ … “So once I mentioned, ‘I don’t envy your place,’ all people in Boston was like, ‘He simply instructed Robert Kraft he has to fireside Invoice.’

“I used to be like, yo, you mentioned that. I used to be speaking about the entire different — possibly that’s considered one of them; possibly that’s actually one of many outcomes. Which leads me much more to say I don’t envy his place, since you heard what I simply mentioned about Invoice Belichick. That’s how I really feel about Invoice Belichick.

“The web simply constructed a story actually shortly about what I mentioned. … I didn’t say Robert Kraft is firing Invoice Belichick. Y’all are saying that. I used to be simply saying I don’t envy what you need to do. After I listened to it again, my intent was that. It was nothing else. So I simply want to let all people know that I used to be not disrespecting Robert Kraft. It was the exact opposite of that. It was, like, large respect for all the pieces, and you’ve got a troublesome place proper now.”

As anticipated, Belichick didn’t provide up a lot on Monday when requested on WEEI’s “The Greg Hill Present” about McAfee’s feedback or Kraft’s response. 

“Such as you mentioned, it’s week to week right here this week towards Kansas Metropolis,” Belichick mentioned. “We’re gonna concentrate on all the pieces we are able to do to exit and play our greatest recreation of the yr towards KC.”