Bill Belichick reacts to Patriots trading Josh Uche to Chiefs

Bill Belichick reacted to the Patriots trading Josh Uche to the Chiefs. It 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. If Bill Belichick was still in charge in Foxboro, the change probably wouldn't have happened.

The Patriots' former head coach and de facto general manager shared his reaction to the trade during his appearance The Pat McAfee Show. He pointed out New England's struggles this season while praising Kansas City for adding a pass rusher at a minuscule price.

“(The Chiefs) haven’t given up anything, in my opinion,” Belichick said. “Look, Josh Uche is a really good rusher. He didn't have a chance to make an impact for the Patriots this year because they were behind by a lot. The situation wasn’t good.”

“He had a great year two years ago. Now he (Matthew) had Judon on the other side, so it was two good pass rushers. But he will have plenty of opportunities to pounce in Kansas City. I think he will really help them for his size. He has excellent speed and a certain flexibility in coverage. Rusher, anyone can do that. He will definitely 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 season, he recorded a career-high 11.5 sacks in 15 games.

Uche has not been able to repeat this success in the last 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's leaving a 2-6 team and heading to a 7-0 series seeking his third straight Super Bowl title. The Chiefs already had one of the NFL's best defenses, but they're hoping the addition of Uche will boost the pass rush, which ranks 24th in sacks (15) this season.