Malcolm Butler: 'No bad blood between me and Bill Belichick'
Malcolm Butler may never be able to completely remove the sour taste of his benching in Super Bowl LII, but the former New England Patriots cornerback insists he's not holding any grudges against his ex-coach.
"No bad blood between me and Bill Belichick," Butler told Cameron Wolfe of ESPN. "One of the greatest coaches ever and I care about him, I know he care about me. And this a hurtful game sometimes and it can look different than what it is. But that's my guy. ... I got a lot of respect for him."
After starting throughout the regular season and the playoffs, Butler was limited to just one snap - a play on special teams - in the Patriots' Super Bowl loss to the Philadelphia Eagles. What prompted the benching has never been explained to anyone other than, possibly, Butler.
The 28-year-old left New England in the offseason, signing a five-year, $61-million deal with the Tennessee Titans in free agency.