Tedy Bruschi’s suggestion Matthew Stafford lacked toughness to play for Patriots is wrong

Tedy Bruschi didn’t seem impressed with Matthew Stafford’s reported rejection of the New England Patriots.

The Lions agreed to trade Stafford to the Rams, but L.A. was hardly the only team interested in acquiring the veteran quarterback. Though he didn’t express an overwhelming preference on where he wanted to land, he did indicate that he would not play for Bill Belichick and the Patriots, according to reports.

“He’s not tough enough to play here,” Bruschi told WEEI sports radio on Wednesday. “He’s just not tough enough. I don’t think he’s tough enough to be coached hard. I mean, do you realize the mental toughness that Tom Brady had to have for 20 years to deal with Bill Belichick and that type of coaching? I mean, constant pressure every single day. Does Stafford sort of grab you as a guy who could handle that? I just don’t think so. So he went to Sean McVay and get his little best friend relationship and go have fun over there. That’s fine.”

Stafford endured 12 years of playing for the Lions, a franchise that went 0-16 before it drafted him at No. 1 out of Georgia. The quarterback went through season after season of poor coaching and general management. And he came out the other side as one of the most consistent quarterbacks in the last decade. He has demonstrated a rare toughness, performing well despite fairly consistent circumstantial adversity.

Plus, there’s this…

It’s not clear why Stafford didn’t want to play for Belichick. (It’s possible that Stafford’s fractured relationship with former Lions coach Matt Patricia has something to do with it.) Surely, Belichick has helped players maximize their potential in the past — but he couldn’t with quarterback Cam Newton.

Stafford should thrive under coach Sean McVay, one of the brightest offensive minds in the NFL.