Initial assumptions was that the mess on the football field had spilled over into the New England Patriots’ locker room, following Sunday’s odd benching of cornerbacks Jack Jones and J.C. Jackson against the Washington Commanders.
Granted, both players did eventually come into the game, but they were sitting on pine when the defense took the field for the first time with cornerback Shaun Wade as a starter.
Patriots cornerbacks coach Mike Pellegrino cautioned people from blowing the situation out of proportion, when speaking with media members on Tuesday.
“I think the narrative should be really pushed toward ‘What did Shaun do right to earn that opportunity,'” Pellegrino said, via NESN’s Zack Cox.
As for why Shaun Wade started over both Jones and J.C. Jackson, Pellegrino said Wade had a great week of practice and that the Patriots played all of their CBs:
"I think the narrative should be really pushed toward 'What did Shaun do right to earn that opportunity.' "
Wade only… https://t.co/SU97P9pfQ3
— Zack Cox (@ZackCoxNESN) November 7, 2023
The mysterious benching even seemed to be lost on coach Bill Belichick, who pretended like it wasn’t even a thing after the game.
#Patriots coach Bill Belichick asked about CBs Jack Jones & J.C. Jackson & if they were benched to start the game: "No."
"Everybody played. They all played." @ABC6 #ForeverNE
📹: @IanSteeleABC6 pic.twitter.com/zWrs94xtyl
— Nick Coit (@NCoitABC6) November 5, 2023
Jones reportedly exited the building and wasn’t made available to reporters to comment after the game, while Jackson declined to speak. It was a strange situation that even led to Jones liking this tweet after the Patriots fell to 2-7 on the season in a 20-17 loss to the Commanders.
This liked tweet by Jack Jones is something pic.twitter.com/zwaX6X56lB
— Mark Daniels (@ByMarkDaniels) November 5, 2023
It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to see there’s trouble brewing in New England right now. Could cooler heads prevail and everyone gets back to work without incident this week? Absolutely.
But there’s also the truth that nothing good comes from losing as much as the Patriots have lost this year. Frustrations are boiling over with the team ranking amongst the worst in football.
It’s hard to envision that improving given the current trajectory of the team is a top-five draft pick in 2024 and the ugliest season in Bill Belichick’s entire coaching career with the Patriots.
