Hall of Fame wide receiver Cris Carter did not hold back when he discussed the decision of New England Patriots head coach Bill Belichick to bench cornerback Malcolm Butler in Super Bowl LII. In FOX Sports 1’s “First Things First," Carter spoke about Butler’s benching and the Patriots’ 41-33 loss to the Philadelphia Eagles. Carter said Belichick’s decision to sit Butler was the wrong one, adding that the veteran head coach failed New England with his move. According to Carter, it was due to Belichick’s arrogance that Butler did not get an exact explanation about his benching.

Carter slams Belichick for benching Butler

Carter insisted that Belichick should understand that Butler did not travel with the team to the Super Bowl because he was sick and under the weather. Also, Carter said that Belichick should have informed Butler of his decision to bench him, rather than give the silent treatment throughout the game. There were reports that Butler’s sickness was not the primary reason for his benching, while some Patriots defended Belichick’s decision to sit him. Butler recently signed a five-year deal worth $61 million with the Tennessee Titans. During a Sports Illustrated interview, Butler claimed that the Patriots could have won Super Bowl LII if he played. Butler added that he wanted to confront Belichick and then-defensive coordinator Matt Patricia about the decision to bench him, but he held himself back.

Wideout, tight end visit New England

According to Field Yates of ESPN, the Patriots hosted wide receiver Jordan Matthews and tight end Troy Niklas on free agent visits on Monday. Matthews and Niklas were both members of the 2014 NFL Draft class, taken by the Philadelphia Eagles and Arizona Cardinals 42nd and 52nd, respectively.

After three seasons in Philadelphia, the Eagles traded the 25-year-old Matthews to the Buffalo Bills, where he had 25 passes for 282 yards and one touchdown in 10 games last season. In his four NFL years, Matthews has 250 career receptions for 2,955 yards with 20 touchdowns.

The 25-year-old Niklas, for his part, caught 19 passes for 203 yards and three touchdowns in four seasons with the Cardinals.

Last season, Niklas received 11 passes for 132 yards with one score. The Patriots need insurance at tight end due to the uncertain future of Rob Gronkowski, who has yet to inform the team if he will play next season or retire from the NFL. Currently, the Patriots have Dwayne Allen, Jacob Hollister and Will Tye all below Gronkowski as tight ends, while they have several receivers on their depth chart, including Julian Edelman, Brandin Cooks, Chris Hogan, Malcolm Mitchell and Cordarrelle Patterson. They also have Matthew Slater, Kenny Britt, Phillip Dorsett, Riley McCarron, and Cody Hollister as receivers.