Following the New England Patriots’ 23-16 victory over the Buffalo Bills on Sunday, team owner Robert Kraft came under fire from outspoken sports personality Bill Simmons.
Simmons joined former Patriots tight end Rob Gronkowski in condemning the team’s decision to fire head coach Jerod Mayo and questioned the organization’s overall strategy, calling it a “complete organizational collapse.”
“It’s just a complete organizational collapse, disgrace, it made no sense, it made no sense as it was happening,” Simmons said.
In fairness, it’s been quite clear that Mayo was way over his head. Kraft admitted to that and said it was a mistake to hire him as head coach in the first place.
However, Mayo supporters believe he could have turned things around if given time.
Either way, no one can deny that he inherited a mess in New England and was not set up very well for success.
Adding to Simmons’ frustration was the fact that the Patriots had the No. 1 overall pick in the draft entering Sunday – but pissed it away by beating the Bills.
He compared the Patriots’ mismanagement to the Kansas City Chiefs’ more deliberate strategy in their game against the Denver Broncos.
“The f*cking Chiefs knew how to tank,” Simmons said. “The Chiefs are like ‘Here is Carson Wentz’, just handing the ball off and then we’re going to bring in our third-string quarterback.
“We had the first pick and now we have the fourth pick, we moved back three spots every single round.
“One of my friends texted me and was like, ‘We traded the first pick for the fourth pick and got nothing in the trade, and we moved back 3 spots in every round.’ We gave up all these potential assets that came with the pick.”
Simmons also expressed disbelief over the timing of Jerod Mayo’s firing, accusing the Patriots of creating unnecessary chaos.
He argued that the decision to fire Mayo after the season finale, rather than earlier, undermined the team’s ability to plan effectively.
“The thing that kills me is they fire the coach right after the game,” Simmons said. “They knew they were going to do that for at least a week.
“Basically, he’s trying to win and the offensive coordinator is trying to win because they don’t know if they’re going to be there. They are trying to coach for their jobs.”
Simmons saved some of his harshest criticism for Kraft, suggesting the Patriots’ owner failed to provide adequate leadership and accountability during a pivotal moment for the franchise.
Kraft addressed the media on Monday, claiming he had no influence over the season finale’s strategic decisions – a claim Simmons dismissed outright.
“It just speaks to what this whole season was like. Which was owners who don’t know what they are doing, a front office who had no idea what they were doing, and a coach who had no idea what he was doing, and contradicted himself over and over again,” he said.
With Mayo out and the No. 1 pick lost, the Patriots must now focus on rebuilding.
While they appear to have their franchise quarterback in Drake Maye, Simmons emphasized the importance of leveraging the draft to secure additional assets – a strategy the team failed to execute.
While all signs point to the Patriots hiring Mike Vrabel, there is fear that the Las Vegas Raiders and old buddy Tom Brady might lure him out west instead.
The topic of “tanking” is one that is visited each and every year.
While fans (and some general managers) are supporters of it in certain situations, the fact of the matter is players will always play to win. Period.
In other words, there is only so much you can do to “tank” a game. Having said that, Simmons is far from alone with his feelings on the issue.
After all, there’s a reason why boos rained down on Mayo and the team when the clock struck zero after their “win” over the Bills on Sunday…
What are your thoughts on Simmons’ comments?
Will Kraft and the Patriots be able to land Vrabel? … Or can you see Brady and the Raiders stealing him away???
