Kendrick Bourne said the Patriots locker room was ‘kind of a toxic place’
"We thought we were going to get somebody different, and I think it was just ultimately not the right choice to put him in that position."
Kendrick Bourne’s candid thoughts on a “rough” two years with the Patriots: In 2021, Kendrick Bourne — who signed with the Patriots in the prior offseason to help shore up the wide receiver position — had the best year of his career.
Bourne hauled in 55 passes for 800 yards and caught five touchdowns. With Mac Jones coming off a Pro Bowl season in his rookie year, it appeared that the duo might flourish together in New England.
Yet the ensuing years have brought disappointment for both Bourne and Jones. Bourne was inexplicably moved down the depth chart ahead of the 2022 season by then-offensive assistant Matt Patricia (who replaced Josh McDaniels as the Patriots’ offensive play caller).
In 2023, Bourne’s production went back up, but his season was ended in October after tearing an ACL.
With his contract up, Bourne is once again a free agent. Though he’s left the door open to a New England return (noting recently that he feels he has “unfinished business” with the Patriots), the 28-year-old also isn’t afraid to speak his mind when asked about Patricia.
During a recent interview with “The Zach Gelb Show” on CBS Sports, Bourne was asked why Patricia “put him in the doghouse” following his productive 2021 season.
“That’s a good question,” Bourne replied. “I really don’t know. I was coming off my best year, so I was thinking I’m going back in, I’m going to be able to be out there. I guess he just had different plans, so I’m not sure.”
“I can honestly say too I could’ve been better too in certain areas, but I was getting into the game with it, feeling sorry for myself,” Bourne admitted. “I kind of fell victim to the situation. I could’ve approached it probably differently as I think about it. But also, when you have your best players, you give your best players the opportunity to play, I feel like.”
Bourne also alluded to a belief that Patricia wasn’t the first choice for the role of replacing McDaniels (who left after the 2021 season to become head coach of the Raiders).
“It was just a tough situation. It just sucks,” he said. “It was something new. We thought we were going to get somebody different, and I think it was just ultimately not the right choice to put him in that position.”
Another subject that Gelb asked Bourne about was Mac Jones. The former Patriots first-round pick struggled after a promising rookie season.
As Jones was benched multiple times in 2023, did Bourne feel like the quarterback was well liked within the locker room?
“Mac Jones was really liked,” Bourne said in response. “I think it was rough in 2023, 2022 obviously was [also] rough as we talked about, and then 2023 it got more rough.”
Later, Bourne clarified that he wouldn’t speak for other Patriots players, but pointed out that he personally has a good rapport with Jones.
“I don’t want to say he wasn’t liked. It was just everybody’s point of view is different. I love Mac. I have a good relationship with him, but I couldn’t tell you how somebody else felt. I think it was just different emotions about him.”
Additionally, Bourne acknowledged what was plainly obvious about the final two years of the Bill Belichick era.
“It was just two years of roughness, of kind of rebuilding, of trying to find who we were, and I think it was kind of a toxic place,” Bourne explained. “People [were] pointing the fingers and things like that in the locker room. Not too bad, but you could feel the energy.”
Trivia: Rob Gronkowski has more regular season touchdown catches than any other player in Patriots history with 79. What wide receiver ranks second on New England’s all-time touchdown reception list?
(Answer at the bottom).
Hint: He played his entire career in New England except for his final NFL season in 1990.
Scores and schedules:
The Bruins were soundly beaten by the Flames on Tuesday, 4-1, in the team’s return from the All-Star break. Boston will be back on Thursday evening for a home matchup against the Canucks at 7 p.m.
Tonight, the Celtics face the Hawks at TD Garden. The game tips off at 7:30 p.m.
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On this day: In 1973, Dave Cowens scored 34 points along with 17 rebounds to help the Celtics beat the Lakers 113-112 in overtime. John Havlicek was also a major contributor, scoring 30 points with eight rebounds and nine assists.
The Bruins also got a win, overcoming the Minnesota North Stars 3-2 thanks to a pair of goals from Wayne Cashman (and one from Phil Esposito).
Daily highlight: Jake Cates scored an outrageous no-look goal in Boston University’s season-opening 14-10 win over Saint Joseph’s on Tuesday. It was one of Cates’s five goals in an impressive showing.
Trivia answer: Stanley Morgan
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