It sounds like Stephen A. Smith thinks Demaryius Thomas could use a reality check.
Not much was made about Thomas’ departure from New England at the time, but it’s since become a talking point thanks to recent comments made by the veteran wide receiver. Thomas views his Patriots tenure as a “waste of time” and thought it was “insulting” the way the organization handled him during his short time in Foxboro.
Bill Belichick effectively side-stepped Thomas’ remarks Thursday during his media availability, but the same can’t be said for Smith, who sounded off on the receiver on ESPN’s “First Take.”
“I call him delusional because his complaints about the Patriots — you appear to be the only individual who didn’t know any better,” Smith said. “The fact of the matter is, you’re not a star any longer, and when you’re not a star and you’re not a high-end producer or you’ve played in three games and have nine receptions for 108 yards on the season and it’s been years since you’ve had a 1,000-yard season, what the hell do you expect?”
Smith continued: “When you have really, really diminished in the eyes of folks in terms of your talent level and what you potentially bring to the table, what are you going to expect from a team like the New England Patriots, who are all about winning and all about themselves as a brand, as an organization? Very little of it is about the individual. I think he’s a bit delusional if he expected anything different than what he got because he’s not a high-end producer anymore.”
It’s tough to disagree with Smith. Thomas will turn 32 in late December and is coming off a serious Achilles injury. He likely would have been a long shot to truly flourish with the Patriots, and instead of stashing him at the bottom of their WR depth chart, they shipped him to a team that was in greater need of his services.
Thomas might just be sour about not being able to team up with Tom Brady and legitimately compete for a Super Bowl, but he’s coming off as a bit dramatic with his take on his exit from New England.
Thomas will have a chance to stick it to his former team Monday night when the AFC East rivals collide at MetLife Stadium. But given how well the Patriots’ secondary — and defense as a whole — has been playing thus far, he’s likely bound for a quiet evening.
