ESPN NFL analyst Rex Ryan blasts ex-rival Bill Belichick for Patriots’ demise: ‘Your team stinks… Tom Brady was the only reason you won anyway’
- Ryan admitted Belichick is the ‘greatest in history’ as he eviscerates him
- Belichick won six Super Bowls with Brady, who then added another in Tampa
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ESPN’s Rex Ryan has seen more than enough of the “Patriot way,” especially with coach Bill Belichick’s team falling to 2-9 on Sunday.
Once used to describe New England’s locker room culture during the Tom Brady era, the Patriot way is now being blamed for the team’s struggles under Belichick, which drew Ryan’s ire during Monday’s episode of “Get Up” . After Belichick again declined to name a starting quarterback until Sunday, when the Patriots lost to the hapless New York Giants, the ex-Jets and Bills coach lashed out at his former rival.
“Can I just say this: Bill Belichick, please stop,” Ryan said Monday after Patriots quarterbacks Mac Jones and Bailey Zappe both struggled at MetLife Stadium. ‘Name a name for your dang starter. It doesn’t matter, they both stink, whether it’s Zappe or ”Pea Shooter” Jones – like we care about your team. Your team stinks.”
Then Ryan took it a step further by crediting Brady for Belichick’s six Super Bowl rings.
“Tom Brady was the only reason you won anyway,” Ryan said of the former Patriots and Buccaneers quarterback. “I said from the jump they would never win again if that guy trotted to Tampa.”
Rex Ryan eviscerated Bill Belichick on Monday while admitting the Patriots screwed me
The Patriots are now 2-9 on the season after Bill Belichick (pictured) & Co. lost to the Giants
Tom Brady’s number 12 was retired earlier this season in a ceremony in Foxborough
Ryan’s ESPN co-host Ryan Clark couldn’t hide his amusement when he heard Ryan attack Belichick
“My boy Rex is on fire!” the former Pittsburgh Steelers safety shouted.
The point Ryan was making was about the Patriot way.
“This team plays like they’re exhausted,” Ryan said. “And in the Patriot way, that’s it. It exhausts these children.
“Because I know how exhausting that is for these kids,” Ryan continued. “And that’s what you’re dealing with now.”
Ryan hasn’t completely dismissed Belichick’s performance.
After all, the Patriots are 9-3 against Ryan teams, including the Jets’ playoff win in Foxborough in 2011.
“Bill Belichick – the greatest in history,” Ryan said. ‘I will never dispute that. I got my ass kicked by him a million times.
“But if you think for one moment that it wasn’t about Tom Brady, you’re completely crazy.”
The Patriots are currently ranked 26th and 16th in offense and defense, respectively, and are likely on their way to a top-three selection in the 2024 NFL Draft.