Old friend Bart Scott is never shy when offering up opinions, which is in large part why the trash-talking former Jets linebacker has had a successful career as a broadcaster and is now one of the three on-air replacements for legendary WFAN host Mike Francesa.
Scott joined Glenn Ordway and Lou Merloni on Ordway, Merloni and Fauria Wednesday afternoon on Radio Row and claimed that he would never have wanted to play for the Patriots because of their work environment, and specifically, coach Bill Belichick.
"I don't know if I'm built to play for a guy like Bill," Scott said. "Just from what I've heard from guys that have played there, they didn't enjoy it. They didn't enjoy the atmosphere, they didn't enjoy going to work. I played with Adalius Thomas, Marquise Cole.
"I enjoy playing football a certain way. There's no right or wrong way. For me to be able to put my body on the line, I have to enjoy my work environment. I have to enjoy the week leading up to practice. I just know too many guys that have played for the Patriots that I played with or that I knew that just says it's not an enjoyable experience."
Scott went on to explain that Thomas, his former teammate in Baltimore with the Ravens, is "one of the most responsible individuals you will ever run into" when Ordway reminded him that Thomas was late to practice and sent home in 2009 from Gillette Stadium during a small snowstorm in Foxboro. Scott said that Belichick never properly utilized Thomas in New England.
"The genius of Bill Belichick - he had one of the most versatile weapons in the NFL and he had no idea how to use him," he said. "Us in Baltimore were laughing when they thought that they could make Adalius Thomas an inside linebacker at 270 pounds. He's never played inside linebacker in his life.
"He had all the tools that [Mike] Vrabel and those guys had, he just couldn't play inside linebacker."
Marquise Cole took to Twitter to deny Scott's claim, saying "I loved my time on every team that I was on and am grateful for each team that gave me an opportunity." Cole sat down with Shalise Manza Young in 2013 and said he "wouldn't trade it for anything."
Scott added that when on the sidelines at Gillette during the AFC Championship Game last season that Belichick walked over to the group of Scott, Bill Cowher and Tony Gonzalez and "didn't even look at" Scott. "I'm like, 'Damn, Bill. Let it go, bro.'"