Patriots

Tedy Bruschi called out Asante Samuel for labeling Bill Belichick ‘an average coach’

Asante Samuel, Mike Vrabel, Tedy Bruschi, and Richard Seymour sit on the bench during a Patriots playoff loss to the Broncos in Jan. 2006. Jim Davis/Boston Globe

By Hayden Bird

October 26, 2022

The discussion over Bill Belichick has spread beyond just the analysis of his quarterback selection, and now includes a Twitter disagreement from two of his former players.

With New England unexpectedly losing to the Bears on Monday night — and with the lingering uncertainty over whether Mac Jones or Bailey Zappe will play — Belichick’s critics have risen to the surface.

One is former Patriots cornerback Asante Samuel. The 41-year-old, who last played in the NFL in 2013 with the Falcons, took to Twitter to call Belichick “average.”

“Belichick is starting to show you he is an average coach without [Tom] Brady,” Samuel said.

The comment elicited a range of responses, but one stuck out. Samuel’s former Patriots teammate, Tedy Bruschi, quote-tweeted it to deliver a succinct response.

“This is absolutely ridiculous,” Bruschi replied to Samuel.

This is absolutely ridiculous. 😂 😂😂 https://t.co/R4XQKV4Wbk
— Tedy Bruschi (@TedyBruschi) October 26, 2022

The two players overlapped in New England from 2003 through the end of the 2007 season. Each played important roles on the two Super Bowl-winning teams the Patriots had in that span, as well as the run to Super Bowl XLII.

Samuel, originally selected by New England in the fourth round of the 2003 draft, left the Patriots as a free agent in 2008 to sign with the Eagles.

It’s not the first time that the former cornerback has criticized Belichick and the Patriots. In 2010, after leaving New England, Samuel said he doesn’t think the organization “cares” about players. And in 2021 — among other recent comments — Samuel said Belichick is “just another coach” without Brady.