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Patriots teammates offering up support for Kendrick Bourne

Patriots teammates offer up support for Kendrick Bourne
Patriots teammates offer up support for Kendrick Bourne 01:14

FOXBORO -- Kendrick Bourne may be in Bill Belichick's doghouse, but he has the full support of his Patriots teammates. 

Bourne was one of New England's more dynamic offensive weapons in 2021, a rare receiver who thrived in his first season with the team. But something happened over the summer, and Bourne is no longer part of Belichick's master plan at the moment.

Bourne didn't play his first snap in Sunday's loss to the Dolphins until there was just 5:53 left in the fourth quarter. He made a pretty big impact when he did see the field, hauling in a 41-yard reception from Mac Jones for New England's longest play of the afternoon.

But he only played two snaps, and he was not on the field when Nelson Agholor fumbled away the Patriots' best chance to make the game interesting two plays later. Bourne was pretty upset on the sideline following the fumble, and needed to be calmed down by teammates on the bench. 

It's not a great situation for anyone. Belichick said after the game that Bourne's lack of playing time was not a disciplinary move, but that's the only explanation for keeping one of the team's best pass-catchers off the field. Bourne had a rough summer and was benched for the team's second preseason game after partaking in an on-field fight during joint practice sessions with the Carolina Panthers. He was also sent off the field by Belichick after he wasn't properly dressed for a practice.

Those problems have now carried over to the regular season, and NBC Sports Boston's reported after Sunday's loss that Bourne's teammates are surprised that they aren't seeing more of him on the field. And it was clear on Sunday that the Patriots aren't good enough to be benching one of their best offensive players. If the situation doesn't solve itself soon, Belichick may get a Bourne ultimatum from those in the New England locker room.

A few of Bourne's teammates offered up their support for the receiver on Monday afternoon, including his quarterback.

"KB has to control what he can control and when he gets the chance to play or practice, just like we all do, we have to try and do our best that we can," Jones said Monday. "He just has to continue to be himself. He's done a good job. He's a great teammate, and we have a lot of guys on our team like that. I hope he can contribute more, and he will. His time will come. 

"Like I always say, the plays will come. Don't chase them," Jones added. "He'll get a chance and when he does, I have confidence in him. He's a great route runner, great competitor. He's just got to do what he's doing and continue to see his role increase."

The quarterback also discussed his chemistry with Bourne, which was on full display last season when the two connected 55 times for 800 yards and five touchdowns.

"I think KB, he's very consistent in how he plays. I know exactly where he's going to be and stuff. We have a good amount of banked reps, as I always say, and I feel that way about a lot of guys on our team," said Jones. "I feel like we can spread the ball around, and we just got to continue to do that. Like I said, KB's a big part of it, and we want him to be able to help, and anyone to help. We just want to be able to score more points."

Longtime Patriots captain Matthew Slater said that he has a very special relationship with Bourne, and continues to offer his support and advice to the receiver while he works through whatever is going on between the player and the head coach. As always, Slater's message is one of positivity.

"Anytime a teammate is in that situation you want him to stay positive, continue to work hard, keep his head down, and stay committed to the team and to his craft," said Slater. "I know he's going to do that.

"He's a selfless player," Slater said of Bourne. "He loves this team and he wants to help this team anyway that he can."

Bourne said all the right things after Sunday's loss, blaming himself for the current situation that he's in. We'll find out Sunday in Pittsburgh if that attitude -- and that big catch down in Miami -- is enough to get him back on Belichick's good side.

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