As one of the most successful coaches in NFL history, Bill Belichick has earned the benefit of the doubt from New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft.
That’s why Kraft didn’t take issue with Belichick’s decision to bench cornerback Malcolm Butler in Super Bowl LII — even though he might have disagreed with the decision itself.
Kraft addressed the topic of Butler’s benching Monday during a chat with reporters at the NFL Annual Meeting in Orlando, Fla. Here’s his full response, as transcribed by ESPN.com’s Mike Reiss:
“With my fan hat on, you can come up with all kinds of reasons or things, but here’s the deal: We in New England are privileged to have, I believe, the greatest coach in the history of coaching. We’re involved in a number of businesses in our family — we’re in 95 countries in the world — and we try to encourage to have good managers, and we want them to be bold, we want them to take risks. Sometimes they work out, sometimes they don’t.
“I have faith in Bill as a coach that I don’t think there is anyone who has the football knowledge and expertise combined with understanding personnel — no one can merge those two worlds (like him). He’s done pretty well for us over the last 18 years.
“So, as a fan, I can question some of the moves. As someone who is privileged to be owner of this team, I encourage him to keep going with his instincts and doing what he thinks is right. There is no doubt in my mind, even if he made an error — and this is true with any of our managers — that if they’re doing it for the right reason, then I support it 100 percent.
“I’ve never had one instance in the 18 years where Bill hasn’t done what he believes is in the best interest of our team to help us win games.”
Butler played just one snap on special teams and zero on defense in the Patriots’ 41-33 loss to the Philadelphia Eagles. One month later, he signed a five-year, $61 million contract with the Tennessee Titans, ending a four-year tenure in New England that included three Super Bowl appearances and two championships.
“I have a lot of respect for Malcolm,” Belichick told reporters Sunday night. “We wish him well.”
