What Danny Amendola thinks about Malcolm Butler's Super Bowl benching

Share

Danny Amendola, a newly-minted Miami Dolphin, opened up about Bill Belichick's decision to bench Malcolm Butler in Super Bowl LII.

In an exclusive interview with ESPN's Mike Reiss, Amendola weighed in on the puzzling situation.

"I have my thoughts about it because I was out there putting my blood, sweat and tears out on the field that night, and one of our best players wasn't on the field," Amendola told ESPN. "To tell you the truth, I don't know why. I did ask, but I didn't get any answers. I can't make decisions like that, so I don't necessarily worry about it, but I know Malcolm is a great player and he could have helped us win. For whatever reason, he wasn't out there. He's going to play more football in his career, and he's going to be a great player for a long time."

MORE PATRIOTS:

Butler spent the entire season as the team's No. 1 or No. 2 cornerback, and logged 97 percent of New England's defensive snaps. But he didn't get a single defensive snap in Super Bowl LII, and got just one snap on special teams. The reason for the benching was a football decision, according to Belichick and Butler.

In a game where the winner was determined on the final possession, it's fair to wonder whether Butler might have changed the outcome of the game. Butler seemed to think he could have. Amendola was asked if he sensed Butler's benching hurt his Patriots teammates.

"Yeah, I did, honestly," Amendola told ESPN. "Nobody really got an explanation for it. He's a brother of ours. He was a brother of ours that year. And I hate to see a guy who worked so hard throughout the season not get a chance to play in the biggest game of the year and really get no explanation for it. With that said, I don't know how the business aspect went into that decision. I don't know how the personal aspect went into that decision between him and Bill. But as a friend, I would have loved to see him on the field that day."

NBC SPORTS BOSTON SCHEDULE

Contact Us