Bill Belichick Played Himself With Shot At Former Patriot

Most of Bill Belichick’s commentary about the Patriots’ Week 4 performance was critical, and that was more than fair given how bad New England looked in San Francisco.

Belichick only reserved praise for one Patriot coming out of Sunday’s game at Levi’s Stadium, and in doing so, he took a shot at one of his former players.

The eight-time Super Bowl champion saluted veteran kicker Joey Slye, who accounted for nearly half of the Patriots’ points against the 49ers with field goals from 63 and 54 yards. But Belichick wasn’t able to give kudos to Slye without needling former New England kicker Chad Ryland.

“Joey Slye, that was a great addition for them,” Belichick said Monday on “The Pat McAfee Show,” as transcribed by A to Z Sports’ Sophie Weller. “They got a good kicker and that’s a big upgrade from where we were last year. I’d say there’s some other things that have to be worked out and obviously they got the protection straightened out. That cost them the game against Seattle on the blocked field goal, but we’ll see what the plan is.”

Ryland deserves any criticism he receives, as he missed nine field goals in his lone season with the Patriots and hasn’t found a new NFL job since his New England release in August. But it was Belichick who was responsible for bringing Ryland to Foxboro, Mass., in the first place, which proved to be a complete waste of a 2023 fourth-round pick.

As for Slye, the sixth-year pro received one of the league’s best “honors” for his big day in the Bay Area.