Bill Belichick explains what makes Matthew Slater like Randy Moss and Lawrence Taylor in new video for ‘The Athletic’
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RtTZeFTZsWA
By Matt Dolloff, 985TheSportsHub.com
Just getting this out of the way before you poop yourself. Bill Belichick isn’t literally comparing Matthew Slater to goddamn Randy Moss and Lawrence Taylor. But he made a sort of indirect comparison to those Hall of Famers to explain why Slater is such a valuable player to the Patriots, despite playing exclusively on special teams.
Speaking as part of a new video profile on Slater for The Athletic, Belichick described Slater as a kind of Moss/Taylor for special teams coverage. Opponents have to be aware of him on every play that he’s on the field and double-team him to make sure he doesn’t wreck their field position or, worse, force a turnover.
“I think the impressive thing about Matt is he gets doubled every week,” said Belichick. “I mean, every week there’s a gameplan for him, and I think that’s really the mark of the truly great players, players that I’ve coached. Like Lawrence Taylor – always saw double-team blocks. He always saw help in the pass rush. Great receivers in the game. Randy Moss, he’s always double-covered. You just didn’t put a guy on Moss and say ‘Let him go’. You just didn’t see that.
“Matt’s a complete player. He does a great job in every role he has.”
Matthew Slater of the New England Patriots celebrates a touchdown after a blocked punt during the first half against the Buffalo Bills at New Era Field on September 29, 2019 in Orchard Park, New York. (Photo by Timothy T Ludwig/Getty Images)
Slater put his special teams dominance to the best use of his career in 2019, blocking a punt and recovering one for his first career touchdown. He played a major role in the Patriots’ two closest wins of the season. He earned First Team All-Pro honors for his efforts and his eighth Pro-Bowl nod, the latter of which set an NFL record for a special teamer.
Basically, Slater is putting together as strong a resume as any special teams player for a chance to make the Pro Football Hall of Fame. As always, there’s going to be the inevitable push-back when that question comes back up. You don’t put gunners in the Hall of Fame you irredeemable piece of excrement!!!
But really, if Slater doesn’t get in then we can put to rest the idea that any special teams player would ever get in. Because if not for his accomplishments on the field, Slater is just as respected off it. He’s not about to campaign for it, though.
“I gotta be honest with you, it’s not something I’ve given a great deal of thought to,” said Slater. “It doesn’t even sound like a real question that someone should be asking me. I just think of myself as a glue guy who’s tried to contribute as best as he can to a great organization, and I feel so grateful for my experience here.”
Matthew Slater of the New England Patriots celebrates with the Vince Lombardi Trophy after his teams 13-3 win over the Los Angeles Rams during Super Bowl LIII at Mercedes-Benz Stadium on February 03, 2019 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Al Bello/Getty Images)
Score one for the anti-special-teamers-in-the-Hall-of-Fame people, I suppose. But there’s no question that Slater has been excellent at what he does over his career – the Lawrence Taylor of special teams.
Stop yelling.
Slater is set to hit free agency in March. We’ll see if he continues on at age 34. But if he leaves, there will be a massive void to fill both on the special teams coverage units and in the Patriots’ locker room.
Matt Dolloff is a digital producer for 985TheSportsHub.com. Any opinions expressed do not necessarily reflect those of 98.5 The Sports Hub, Beasley Media Group, or any subsidiaries. Have a news tip, question, or comment for Matt? Follow him on Twitter @mattdolloff or email him at [email protected].
