Brandon Spikes and the New England Patriots didn’t go through the most amicable break-up. Time apparently heals all wounds.
Spikes, who made some pointed comments about the Patriots after signing with the Buffalo Bills this offseason, indicated Wednesday that he’s more focused on guiding his new team to victory Sunday than exacting revenge on the organization that supposedly wronged him. The Bills linebacker also was taken aback by Patriots head coach Bill Belichick’s comment earlier in the day.
“Yeah, we know him. I don’t think he’s changed much,” Belichick said Wednesday at Gillette Stadium when asked how Spikes has looked this season. “Hair might be a little longer. He’s about the same.”
Spikes was informed of the comment by reporters at Ralph Wilson Stadium, at which point the 27-year was far more cordial than he was in April, when he threw a Twitter tirade on Patriots fans and described his tenure in New England as “four years a slave.”
“Really? What a pleasant surprise,” Spikes said Wednesday of Belichick’s comment. “I don’t know. … I expected him. … You guys know how it all ended. I don’t think he held a grudge. It is what it is. Players change teams every year, every week. So it just is what it is.”
The Patriots and Bills both enter Sunday’s showdown in Orchard Park, N.Y., with a 3-2 record, meaning the stakes are raised for the AFC East foes. Spikes guaranteed two wins over the Patriots amid his offseason drama but was reserved Wednesday while discussing this weekend’s clash, focusing more on the team than any personal vendettas.
“I mean, what do you expect me to say? You know, I’m on a new team, and they’re a big team in this division,” Spikes told reporters Wednesday. “You’ve got to get after them if you want to get to the playoffs, so this is big for us. I’m not going to say it’s personal, but it’s big for this organization, it’s big for Buffalo. We all need this. Not just the players, the entire city.”
The Patriots are 25-3 against the Bills in the teams’ last 28 meetings. Buffalo hasn’t made the playoffs since 1999.
So yeah, Spikes is correct. Sunday’s game is pretty big.
Photo via Timothy T. Ludwig/USA TODAY Sports Images
