After the New England Patriots benched Malcolm Butler in Super Bowl LII, many assumed the team simply would let the star cornerback walk in free agency.
Well, that’s reportedly not the case.
Despite the infamous benching against the Philadelphia Eagles, the Patriots actually had interest in re-signing Butler during the offseason, NFL Media’s Ian Rapoport reported Sunday, citing sources. Butler, of course, wound up signing a 5-year, $61.25 million contract with the Tennessee Titans, who host the Patriots on Sunday.
“But during the free agency period that immediately followed, Butler remained on the Patriots’ radar,” Rapoport wrote. “As the Titans cornerback gets set to face his old team Sunday, it’s worth noting that New England was still interested in re-signing Butler at the right price, sources say.
” …Â the Patriots — even with the events against the Eagles that oddly left Butler watching every snap from the sideline — informed Butler’s agent Derek Simpson to reach out to them if he didn’t get an offer to his liking. Already paying top corner Stephon Gilmore, the Pats perhaps could have paid Butler around $10 million a year.”
The Malcolm Butler saga was even stranger than you thought: The #Patriots still had interest in him at the right price in free agency… even after the Super Bowl. My story on Butler’s reunion today: https://t.co/HFr4W0pI79
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) November 11, 2018
Obviously, we’ll never know whether Butler ever would have re-signed with New England. But the fact the Patriots had any interest in re-signing him, after all that went down in Minnesota, is awfully surprising.
Butler’s first season in Tennessee has been a huge disappoint, to say the least. By most statistical measures, the 28-year-old has been the worst cornerback in the NFL.
