Chris Long sets record straight about Patriots’ no-fun reputation originally appeared on NBC Sports Boston
Can you actually have fun playing football in New England? Depends on who you ask.
Philadelphia Eagles offensive lineman Lane Johnson famously called the Patriots a “fear-based organization” back in February 2018, claiming head coach Bill Belichick makes his players “act like robots.”
But Chris Long, who spent time with Johnson in Philly and played one season for the Patriots in 2016, couldn’t disagree more with his former teammate.
On a new episode of Tom E. Curran’s Patriots Talk Podcast, the former NFL defensive end reflected on Johnson’s comments and explained why his experience in New England was much different than Johnson’s perception.
Patriots Talk Podcast: Chris Long goes deep on time with Patriots and life in general | Listen & Subscribe | Watch on YouTube
“Lane opened his mouth,” Long told Curran. “… Lane got walked into that and it just stuck. And of course, everybody was like, ‘Oh, Lane is best buddies with Chris. Chris is the one who said it.’ That always bothered the hell out of me, because all I’ve ever said is positives about New England and my teammates there.
“We did have fun. I put on a Jules (Julian Edelman) mask. We were drunk as hell at the parade. We would enjoy the plane rides. Bill would let us sit in first class, which was awesome. Other coaches never did that and always complained about that.
“We had a tight-knit group. It was awesome man, the locker room was great. So I hated being misrepresented by association with that thing, because I did have fun up there.”
It probably helped that the Patriots won a championship during Long’s lone season in New England, rallying from a 28-3 deficit to defeat the Atlanta Falcons in Super Bowl LI. And there are other former Patriots players who didn’t enjoy their time in Foxboro. (See: Marsh, Cassius.)
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But from Long’s experience, Belichick isn’t exactly the cold-blooded figure that many make him out to be.
“Learning football from Bill Belichick was such a blessing,” Long said. “And he was so cool about the way it ended, too. Not that he cared that I was leaving, but he didn’t hold a grudge or nothing like that. We still text from time to time.”
While every player’s experience is different, Long’s comments are worth remembering whenever an opposing player shares his opinion of life in Foxboro.
Long also discussed how he almost joined the Falcons instead of the Patriots and much more in the Patriots Talk Podcast, which you can watch in full below or subscribe to wherever you get your podcasts.