Darrelle Revis starts with anti-Patriots talk
New York Jets cornerback Darrelle Revis talks to the media near his locker at the team's football training facility in Florham Park, N.J. (May 10, 2012) Credit: AP
FLORHAM PARK, N.J. -- It's only early May, but the Jets-Patriots rivalry is in midseason form.
A few weeks ago, Jets cornerback Darrelle Revis was on an ESPN program playing a word association game, and when asked to sum up his thoughts about Bill Belichick in one word, he chose a doozy: "Jerk."
It turns out that might have been one of the tamer words to pass between the two heated AFC East rivals.
Speaking to the media in the Jets' locker room Thursday, Revis expounded on his assessment.
"It's just how I felt, and that's how I feel," Revis said. "I feel like people let him slide when he says his smart remarks and certain things. He says comments about us like he never coached here, because he did. That's how I felt. They told me to sum it up and I gave one word. He can take it how he wants; he can say what he has to say back.
"Even if he says something back, I'm not going to be jawing with him. I said what I had to say."
Revis said he was particularly ruffled by Belichick's comments after a win over the Jets this past season. While walking off the field, Belichick said to his son, according to reports, "Thirty-seven points on the best defense in the league," followed by a vulgar phrase.
"That's just ignorant," Revis said. "Why go there? Why go there? You won fair and square . . . When you start saying stuff like that, it gets too personal. You don't have to say that. Did anybody else say anything like that? No. Not from our side. Bart [Scott] said his thing, the 'Can't wait!' thing, but he still didn't disrespect."
Revis was reminded that Antonio Cromartie famously called Tom Brady a vulgar word.
"Sometimes he does [act like that] on the field," Revis said of Brady. "If that's how he acts on the field, that's how he acts. He wants to throw a touchdown and then point at our sideline, that's disrespect, man. That's not sportsmanship. Now, do people say words to each other on the field? Oh, yeah. That's in between the lines. But when it's getting out of hand, come on, man. Come on. Sportsmanship."
Revis holds off on holdout.
Revis was attending the offseason workout with his teammates Thursday, but he made no promises about whether he will be at training camp if he's still under his current contract.
"I can't sit here and say I'm going to hold out or not," he said.
Revis signed a four-year deal to end his last holdout. Two years into it, he said he is "cool" with the contract but hinted that he has outperformed it.
"I don't need to say that," he said. "It speaks for itself."
