Welcome to the Reddit home of the 6x Super Bowl Champion New England Patriots. All rights reserved.This text is here for sidebar design. Terms of Use and Privacy Policy and Safety Information / Your California Privacy Rights are applicable to you. ^ Back to Top ^ © 2023 ESPN Internet Ventures. That's how the game goes sometimes.'ĮSPN's Adam Schefter contributed to his report. He could have helped us, maybe, I don't know.

I know he has gone a few times, but I feel for him.'Īdded Gilmore, the team's other starting cornerback: 'He's a great player. It is not often you go to the Super Bowl. Of Butler, Rowe said, 'He's a very emotional guy. Rowe broke up a pass in the end zone on the Eagles' opening drive to force a field goal but then was in coverage on Alshon Jeffery's 34-yard touchdown in the end zone. The second of those plays came on third-and-12. Rowe, who at 6-foot-1 and 205 pounds is a bigger option than the 5-foot-11, 190-pound Butler, was in coverage on the Eagles' initial two first-down conversions. He wants to be out there, so I'm not surprised he was emotional.' 'We all want to be out there, we all want to play, so I know Malc, he's super competitive. 'We put the players and the game plan out there that we thought would be the best, like we always do,' he said.īutler was visibly emotional during the national anthem and was crying on the sideline.īecause Butler has been a mainstay on defense, Devin McCourty said 'to not be out there I'm sure crushed him,' McCourty told the Boston Herald.

NBC asked Patriots coach Bill Belichick at halftime why Butler was not playing and reported that the coach said, 'I made the decisions that give us the best chance to win.'Īfter the game, Belichick said it was a football decision, not a disciplinary move. I'm pretty sure that he was a little upset that he didn't play.' 'He did a good job of staying in tune the whole time, cheering his teammates on, so a lot of respect to Malcolm for being a great teammate today,' Harmon said. Patriots safety Duron Harmon said that Butler handled the situation well during the game. We just had a situation where we had some matchups and packages that we went with.' 'Different situations came up, and we were just trying to move some things around. 'We just played all the guys we could to try to help us win in whatever packages we had,' said Patricia, whose unit primarily played a 'big nickel' package with two cornerbacks and three safeties throughout the game. He wasn't on the team's final injury report.ĭefensive coordinator Matt Patricia said Butler was healthy, but matchups were the reason for why he wasn't on the field. He arrived at Super Bowl LII one day after the team, on Tuesday, because of an illness that he said had him at the hospital. 'I ain't Miss Cleo,' he said, 'so I can't tell the future.'īutler played 97.8 percent of the defensive snaps in the regular season. When asked what is next for him, Butler, who will become an unrestricted free agent after the season, said he didn't know. I had nothing but great things to say about the organization. 'I was just doing my job supporting my teammates. I don't know what it was,' an emotional Butler said as he walked toward the team buses with his family. The Patriots cornerback, the hero of Super Bowl XLIX, played a bit on special teams in the second half but not a single down on defense.Įric Rowe started in place of Butler on Sunday. 'They gave up on me,' Butler said after the game. MINNEAPOLIS - New England Patriots cornerback Malcolm Butler expressed his frustration about not starting in the team's 41-33 loss to the Philadelphia Eagles in Super Bowl LII. Malcolm Butler on Super Bowl loss: 'I could have changed that game' You have reached a degraded version of because you're using an unsupported version of Internet Explorer.įor a complete experience, please upgrade or use a supported browser

Malcolm butler super bowl