Kevin Wildes Fires Back At Jets Coach’s ‘Hard Knocks’ Patriots Callout

New York Jets defensive coordinator Jeff Ulbrich took a dig at the New England Patriots on the season premiere of HBO’s “Hard Knocks,” calling into question Bill Belichick’s longstanding “do your job” mantra.

The jab didn’t sit well with FS1’s Kevin Wildes, a vocal Patriots fan, who fired back on Wednesday’s episode of “First Things First.”

“There’s a lot of things to make fun of the Patriots for. There’s plenty. We can list a thousand. The motto “do your job,” which is also, like, Nick Saban’s motto at Alabama, is not one of them,” Wildes said. “In fact, the one thing you made fun of me the most about, (Nick Wright) … is when (former Patriots wide receiver) Jakobi Meyers tried to throw a backwards lateral pass (last season). That’s not your job. Your job is to not pass the ball to Mac Jones, and that’s when things go awry.

” … I just thought it was comical that the Jets, who have lost 14 consecutive games to the New England Patriots, that they decided to take a shot at the very foundation of the dynasty.”

The Jets seemingly are in much better shape than the Patriots right now, which is reflected in the odds. New York is +250 to win the AFC East this season, whereas New England is listed at +800 at FanDuel Sportsbook.

The Jets have a very talented roster, led by an all-time quarterback in Aaron Rodgers, while the Patriots still are struggling to find their way since Tom Brady’s departure. This figures to be a make-or-break campaign for third-year QB Mac Jones. And it could be a make-or-break season for Belichick, as well.

But calling out the whole “do your job” motto? Well, that could serve as bulletin-board material in Foxboro, particularly before the Patriots and Jets square off at MetLife Stadium in Week 3 of the regular season.