Dion Lewis had some harsh words for his former team last Sunday, but it appears that might have been in the heat of the moment.
The Titans running back called the Patriots “cheap” after Tennessee handed New England a 34-10 beatdown at Nissan Stadium. Lewis, who played three seasons for the Patriots, also called out their lack of physicality and appeared to troll them on Twitter following the win.
Lewis’ frustration appeared to stem from the fact that New England didn’t offer him a lucrative contract last offseason, but perhaps the comments were just indicative of the back’s me-against-the-world mentality.
“I’m a feisty guy, everybody knows that,” Lewis said Wednesday, per Jim Wyatt of TitansOnline. “I have to be that way, I’m (5-foot-7). So I have to carry an edge or chip, so that’s just how I am and that’s what’s gotten me to where I am. So it’s nothing personal, that’s just the type of person I am, the player I am.”
This seems like more of a political answer from Lewis than an actual walk back. He clearly was upset at Bill Belichick’s decision to view him as replaceable and wanted to stick it to his old team.
In fairness to the Patriots, they picked Lewis up off the scrap heap in 2015 and stuck with him after he tore his ACL, deciding to keep him on the roster and pay him to rehab. The Pittsburgh product’s success and Titans contract partly is a product of the Patriots’ belief in his abilities.