Bill Belichick Particularly ‘Feels Bad’ For These Patriots Players

The Patriots are going through it, and even their former head coach can’t help but be a little sympathetic about New England’s struggles.

Bill Belichick had no problem carving up the Patriots with warranted criticisms after Jerod Mayo’s side dropped to 3-10 last weekend. The current losing streak marks the latest tough stretch for New England, which seemingly has been dealing with troubling obstacles since the summer.

Appearing on the latest episode of the “Let’s Go!” podcast, Belichick was asked if feels for Patriots players or if he’s moved on entirely from New England. While the future Hall of Fame head coach isn’t shedding tears for his old team, he is a bit sensitive to what’s going on at One Patriot Place.

“There are a lot of people there that, you know, very close to,” Belichick told Jim Gray, as transcribed by the Boston Herald’s Doug Kyed. “A lot of ’em that I brought there, especially defensively. Almost all those players are re-signed and most all the offensive skill players, too. So it’s hard to see ’em going through that type of a season. There’s nothing I can do about it, I mean, just sit back and watch it. But, of course, yeah, I feel bad for a lot of those guys, especially the defensive players. I know those guys work hard. They’re tough and they care and they put a lot into it. But it’s the National Football League. It’s very competitive. You gotta find a way to stand up to the competition and that’s a challenge for every team.”

Belichick probably is among the few people outside of New England who feel bad at all for the Patriots. They had it made for decades, and it’s now on the players, coaches and executives to turn the franchise around and restore those glory days.

Unfortunately for New England fans, that turnaround might not be imminent.