Still, the 35-year-old, now with the Detroit Lions, can’t help but shoot Belichick as his former teammate Brady prepares to play in his 10th Super Bowl in his first season with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers .
“Danny Amendola is a brilliant guy. He plays football, he knows football, ”said Smith, who began by recognizing that he likes Amendola as a player and as a person. “The last time I checked, he knows that they have special teams, he knows that they have a defense.
“The New England Patriots was ranked as a defense in the top 10 each year he was there. Three times, they were in the top eight. Twice, they were in the top five. They were once the No. 1 defense of the National Football League. It wasn’t just Tom Brady. “
Smith also pointed to the success – or lack thereof – that Amendola had in his NFL career with Lions, Miami Dolphins and then St. Louis Rams as proof that the retired veteran may be wrong in his assessment of the New England situation.
“How the hell are you going to just ignore Bill Belichick and bring it up this year, when they started the season with nine different guys saying, ‘We won’t play because of COVID-19’, which included Patrick Chung and Dont ‘a Hightower,” said Smith. “How are you going to do that? This is very, very blatantly played on Bill Belichick, and I think it’s a shame that he chose to do that because the facts don’t support what he’s saying. I think it was wrong for him to say that. “
Since then Amendola clarified his comments, saying that he “loved” playing for Belichick in New England and is a “big fan” of him as a coach. Belichick also serves as general manager of the Patriots, however, and his approach to this aspect of the job has apparently taken Amendola the wrong way.
However, Amendola certainly pissed off some penalties with his initial opinion of the Brady vs. Belichick debate, which everyone seems to be agreeing on as the Bucs prepare for the Super Bowl LV and the Patriots sit at home after going 7-9 in 2020.
Miniature photo via Christopher Hanewinckel / USA TODAY Sports Images