The Cassius Marsh experiment ended in New England after nine games last fall, and it appears the defensive end’s confrontation with coach Bill Belichick wasn’t as levelheaded as he let on.
Following the San Francisco Chronicle’s recent Q&A with Marsh, 25, the MMQB reported the new 49er “pitched a fit” at halftime of last year’s Patriots-Raiders game in Mexico City. After participating in two snaps, Marsh reportedly tossed a Gatorade jug in the midst of a “locker-room tirade” over playing time, The Atlantic reported. He was released two days after New England sealed a 33-8 victory over Oakland.
“They asked me to do a bunch of stuff that I had never done: covering running backs and receivers and basically almost never rushing the passer, which is what I did in playing defensive line,” Marsh said of adjusting his playing style. “I confronted [Belichick] about all the things that were going on. I won’t get into detail, but it was BS things they were doing. I just wasn’t a fan. And so I, basically, without asking to get cut, I kind of asked to get cut.”
Marsh since signed a two-year, $7.7 million extension with the 49ers, seeming to have no qualms about the club’s enjoyment factor.
“They don’t have fun there. There’s nothing fun about it,” Marsh said of the Patriot Way. “There’s nothing happy about it. I didn’t enjoy any of my time there, you know what I’m saying? It made me for the first time in my life think about not playing football because I hated it that much.”
Much has been made of the culture of the Patriots, with intrigue surrounding the happiness levels of Tom Brady and Rob Gronkowski. After Marsh’s harsh criticism, some current and former Patriots, while endorsing Belichick’s stringent methods, advised New England isn’t for everyone.
“After losing for 10 years, I found winning extremely fun,” tight end Martellus Bennett, who played in New England in 2016 and parts of last year, tweeted Thursday. “What it took to become a winner wasn’t fun but the results were and the guys I won with were plenty fun.”
Bennett earned a ring with the Patriots after the team staged the greatest Super Bowl comeback in history, defeating the Falcons 34-28 in overtime after climbing out of a 28-3 hole at the half.
