Felger & Mazz: Kraft Closes Door On Britt Signing, But Have The Patriots Changed Their Ways?
BOSTON (CBS) - NFL owners, general managers and coaches are down in Orlando this week for the league's annual meeting, and Patriots head honcho Robert Kraft has made quite a few headlines while down there.
Kraft addressed his team's offseason moves, Mark Cuban's comments about the NFL's decline, and has stated he would like to have Vince Wilfork back on the team even after his release request a few weeks ago.
And in speaking to the Herald, Kraft put the kibosh on his team signing a particular free agent with a lengthy rap sheet -- one that includes nine police incidents.
"We won't be signing him," Kraft said Monday regarding receiver Kenny Britt. "That won't happen."
After the Aaron Hernandez arrest, Patriots fans got the sense the team would have a different approach in courting new players. And now that owner Robert Kraft has said "no" to troubled free agent receiver Kenny Britt, does this mean they've changed for good?
Mike Felger, Tony Massarotti and Marc Bertrand discussed the news and they all find it curious that the football people (mainly Bill Belichick) would bring Britt into Foxborough for a visit in the first place if they had no intention of signing him.
There seems to be some disconnect, according to Beetle.
"I think maybe ownership has changed their ways. But I don't think the coaching staff has. They brought in this guy for a visit! So obviously they had an interest. I don't know if they wanted to sign him, but at the very least they wanted to take a look. If they really changed their ways why was this guy even here for a visit?" said Marc Bertrand to open the discussion.
"Maybe the football people have not changed their ways. Maybe they're doing exactly the business as usual, and the Aaron Hernandez incident sort of woke up the owner. Now that Hernandez happened, the call goes to the owner and he says, 'No! You're not gonna get every guy that you want.'" added Felger. "To me it feels like they've changed because they were too loose with their standards."
"This guy Britt? There's a lot there. He drove someone to the hospital with a stab wound and wouldn't cooperate with police," said Mazz.
"How does Bill bring him in in the first place? If it's so egregious what makes Bill think that's gonna fly now?" said Felger.
"That's one of the great questions in this thing, like, do they see eye to eye at all on this thing? And at what point does Bill Belichick get pissed off about it?" asked Mazz in closing.
Listen below for the full discussion:
Kraft Closes Door On Britt Signing, But Have The Patriots Changed Their Ways?
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