BROCKTON, Mass. — Malcolm Butler was met with raucous applause when he surprised West Middle School students Wednesday morning.
The New England Patriots cornerback answered questions from a group of middle-schoolers who started a Kindness Club to prevent bullying at their school. Butler told the students about his experiences of being bullied and how to prevent it.
“A speaker or a celebrity or giving someone advice, especially when people look up to you, it can change someone’s life,” Butler said after the event. “I can remember being in school, and a basketball player or football player came to our school. I wasn’t even talking to my friends, because I was so zoned in on what that person was saying. I think throughout the years, every time someone came and spoke, it motivated me to do better. I locked in and listened to people when they talked.
“They can change someone’s life. They can make someone aim for greatness. I just wanted to do something positive, trying to be better as a person and give back and do the right thing.”
Butler certainly has an inspiring and well-known story. He went to tiny University of West Alabama and received a tryout from the Patriots before latching on as an undrafted free agent in 2014. One year later, he was a Super Bowl hero.
Fast forward another year, and he’s a Pro Bowl cornerback who started all 16 games for the Patriots. Butler’s contract runs out after next year, when he’ll be a restricted free agent. With free agency in the news, the topic of a contract extension certainly was going to come up Tuesday.
“One day it’s going to come,” Butler said. “You just can’t ignore it. I’m just going with the flow, doing my job, making sure I come back in shape, make sure I come back ready to go. And if it happens, it happens. I want it to happen, but I can’t control the things I can’t control. I’m just playing football, glad to be in the NFL, glad to be a Patriots player, and I couldn’t ask for anything more.”
Patriots defensive end Chandler Jones was traded to the Arizona Cardinals on Tuesday. That move could open up funds for Butler to sign a contract extension. Butler understands the nature of the NFL.
“It’s a business, and Chandler’s a great person,” Butler said. “It’s a business, it’s the NFL and good luck to him. He’s an amazing person, funny guy, hate to lose him, but it’s a business.”
The Patriots can extend Butler’s contract any time before the start of the 2017 league year next March. If they can’t reach an agreement, the Patriots can choose to put a first-, second- or original-round tender on him as a restricted free agent. In that scenario, another NFL team would be able to sign Butler to an offer sheet, which the Patriots would have to match to keep him. If the Patriots declined to match, they would receive the value of their tender. Since Butler went undrafted, they would not receive compensation if they slapped him with an original-round tender. The Patriots also could place the franchise tag or transition tag on Butler.
Thumbnail photo via Stew Milne/USA TODAY Sports Images
