Getty Images
Mike Florio asked a question about PFT earlier today: How should Bill Belichick’s decision to reject the presidential medal of freedom be received?
Hall of Fame golfers Annika Sorenstam and Gary Player accepted the same honor from President Trump in the White House last week, a day after the deadly riot at the Capitol. Belichick was supposed to receive his Thursday.
The Patriots coach issued a well-worded statement on Monday and took pictures.
NFLPA executive director DeMaurice Smith praised the decision and the statement.
“Bill and I do not share many words,” Smith said in a video conference Tuesday. “I know it’s going to be a shock to everyone. But I thought his position surely at this moment is extremely important for a person who has an exceptionally high profile in the National Football League. Honestly, I thought his statement was spot on. He refers to the standing with the players, refers to the conversations that were going on in his dressing room about social justice, and although he acknowledges that this is an award that has honored a number of extremely deserving people in the past, he feels, at this moment in history, that he must decline. I thought his statement was spot on. ”