Malcolm Butler Benching Was 'Perfect Storm Of Issues': Report

FOXBOROUGH, MA — The reasons why New England Patriots cornerback Malcolm Butler played zero defensive snaps during Sunday's Super Bowl have been described as a "perfect storm of issues" by a prominent NFL reporter. It's the first look into what has quickly become the hottest story in New England.

Ian Rapoport of the NFL Network says the benching was a complicated matter and had to do with sickness, a rough week of practice, a minor team rules violation related to curfew, and frustration. All that meant that the hero of Super Bowl XLIX against Seattle was limited to just one special teams play Sunday night as Eric Rowe was given his spot on defense.

Kirk Minihane of WEEI said the benching was not a disciplinary issue. Minihane echoed other reports in saying the decision to not use one of the two starting cornerbacks shocked the locker room and left some players and coaches furious.

Coach Bill Belichick said after Sunday's game and again Monday that the decision to bench Butler was done with the team's best interest in mind and denied that it was a disciplinary measure. Defensive coordinator Matt Patricia (who left Monday to become head coach of Detroit) said it was due to the defensive packages they were using.

Butler left the Patriots locker room very quickly after the Super Bowl, but told ESPN's Mike Reiss and Adam Schefter outside the team bus, "They gave up on me. F—. It is what it is. I don't know what it was. I guess I wasn't playing good or they didn't feel comfortable. I don't know. But I could have changed that game."

Butler was on the field for nearly 98 percent of all defensive plays during the 2017 season. He is an unrestricted free agent this offseason

Image: Malcolm Butler warms up for Super Bowl LII. Credit: Mike Ehrmann/Getty Images