Bill Belichick reacts to Patriots trading Josh Uche to Chiefs originally appeared on NBC Sports Boston
On Monday, the New England Patriots traded edge rusher Josh Uche to the Kansas City Chiefs for a 2026 sixth-round draft pick. Had Bill Belichick still been in charge in Foxboro, it’s safe to say this move would not have been made .
The former Patriots head coach and de facto general manager shared his reaction to the trade during his appearance The Pat McAfee Show. He noted New England’s struggles this season while praising Kansas City for adding a pass rusher for a minuscule price.
“(The Chiefs) haven’t given up anything in my mind,” Belichick said. “Look, Josh Uche is a very good rusher. He hasn’t had a chance to rush much for the Patriots this year as they are way behind. The situation has not been good.”
“Two years ago he had a great year. Now he had (Matthew) Judon on the other side of him, so they were two good pass rushers. But he’ll get a lot of opportunities to rush in Kansas City. I think he thinks he will really help them. He has surprising power for his size. He has excellent speed and a good start. So I think he is a good addition for a team that needs another pass rusher Josh can do that. He will certainly help them.
The Belichick-led Patriots selected Uche in the second round of the 2020 NFL Draft. The Michigan product totaled 20.5 sacks in 58 games with New England. During the 2022 campaign, he recorded a career-high 11.5 sacks in 15 games.
Uche has not been able to duplicate that success over the past two years. He has 13 tackles and two sacks in seven games this season.
The Patriots re-signed Uche to a one-year, $3 million contract last offseason. Uche reportedly turned down “significantly more money” to stay in New England.
Now he leaves a 2-6 team for a 7-0 giant in search of a third straight Super Bowl title. The Chiefs already had one of the NFL’s best defenses, but they hope the addition of Uche will boost a pass rush that ranks 24th in sacks (15) this season.
