Julian Edelman and Matthew Slater joined the growing list of current and former New England Patriots players unhappy with Apple TV+'s docuseries, "The Dynasty."
The Patriots greats shared their gripes with the series on the latest episode of Edelman's podcast, "Games With Names." Both Edelman and Slater, who were interviewed for "The Dynasty," took issue with their longtime head coach Bill Belichick being portrayed negatively.
"I know there are some comments that I made on there that made it seem like Bill was just this very demanding presence -- and he was. But I also want people to see that there are multiple sides of Bill," Slater said. "And it's tough because I feel like he's being portrayed in a certain light. And we're painting a picture, but we're only showing people part of the picture.
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"With Coach, it's very complex. And there are things that, you know, were tough, and I'm sure we all feel like, 'Hey, maybe we wish we had done things this way.' But let's make sure none of us forget the fact that the dynasty is not even being talked about without Bill Belichick. And the things that he did were with intentionality and purpose, and I think he got the best out of all of us."
Edelman agreed with Slater's point, nothing that Belichick's tough love made his players better on and off the field.
"I honestly think if you're in your 30s and you've played football, I don't think you've ever liked your football coach. You loved him. But you didn't like your football coach," he said. "Just like I didn't like my parents when they made me do things that they knew was gonna make me a better person.
"I didn't like doing it, we didn't like doing it, work's not easy, doing the little s--- for preparation, doing walkthroughs for walkthroughs for walkthroughs, I hated it. I bitched about it all the time. But we needed it. And that's why you went into every single game knowing you outprepared that team and you have a shot to win. Every single game."
"The Dynasty" has drawn widespread criticism for its portrayal of Belichick. Former Pats safeties Devin McCourty and Rodney Harrison recently voiced their displeasure with the docuseries, as did team owner Robert Kraft at the NFL owners meetings on Tuesday.
Regardless of how Belichick's story is told in the series, his legacy as arguably the greatest head coach in NFL history is untouched. All that matters is the six Super Bowl titles he brought to New England in 20 years, an unprecedented accomplishment that may never be repeated in the NFL.
