Bill Simmons convinced Patriots have to ‘blow it up’ after latest debacle
"This team plays like they don’t practice."
Following the latest lousy Patriots performance, a 40-7 home loss to the Chargers on Sunday, first-year head coach Jerod Mayo faced another round of calls for his job.
One of the loudest voices among the cacophony of those clamoring for change was, perhaps unsurprisingly, media executive and noted Boston sports fan Bill Simmons.
The podcast host has not been shy regarding his criticism of Mayo, Patriots executive vice president of player personnel Eliot Wolf, and even the Kraft ownership.
In his latest salvo, Simmons unleashed on the Patriots’ preparation (or implied lack thereof), noting that the team’s flaws were finally being laid bare in front of a national audience during the rare Saturday game time.
“I’m glad an exclusive Saturday game is showing everyone how bad the Patriots coaching, strategy, defense, play-calling and execution has been for four months,” wrote Simmons. “This team plays like they don’t practice.”
His higher level takeaway, one which he has seemingly been committed to for weeks, is that New England needs to “blow it up,” and make large-scale changes across the board (with the apparent exception of quarterback Drake Maye).
Specifically, Simmons took issue with a practical matter the current iteration of the Patriots will face in the impending offseason.
“You think Tee Higgins is gonna be like, ‘I’m intrigued!'” Simmons joked, citing the Bengals wide receiver who is set to become a coveted unrestricted free agent in the offseason.
Mayo’s job security, despite the chorus of voices speaking against him, has been deemed “safe” on multiple occasions. Maye has also spoken up to advocate for the embattled Patriots staff.
Still, the reality of the team’s 3-12 record (and second six-game losing streak of the season) may yet compel changes at the top.
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