The New England Patriots will once again be watching the NFL's Wildcard weekend from the comfort of their homes, as they await to see who they'll host in the Divisional Round of the playoffs. However, a recent report by ESPN has the Patriots at the forefront of the conversation as we head into the opening round of the playoffs.
According to the report, New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft, coach Bill Belichick and quarterback Tom Brady have had significant disagreements this season which could lead to the breakup of the owner-coach-QB relationship that has won five Super Bowls over the last 17 years.
ESPN's Seth Wickersham, citing a dozen New England staffers, executives, players and other league sources, says one of the key disagreements among the three was who would be around last, as well as management of past controversies. The report alleges that Brady wanted backup QB Jimmy Garoppolo gone, but coach Bill Belichick did not want to trade the promising prospect. Per the report, Kraft essentially forced Belichick to trade Garoppolo.
The story also claims that “Kraft has confessed to people in the building that trading [Garoppolo] might have been a mistake,” and that Belichick “has taken pride in Garoppolo’s 5-0 record [as a starter] in San Francisco.”
Tom Brady's trainer, body coach and business partner Alex Guerrero, was also named as a major factor in the growing rift between Brady and Belichick.
According to the report, Guerrero would blame Patriots trainers for injuries and Belichick ultimately confronted Brady in early September about pressure that players were feeling by Guerrero to train at TB12 [Brady's preferred training method] instead of with the team. There was no resolution to the meeting, ESPN reported.
Check out the fully story here.