Willie McGinest won three Super Bowl rings as a valuable member of the Patriots. All earned without stacking the deck.
The two-time Pro Bowl pass-rusher joined Joe DeCamara & Jon Ritchie on 94WIP Sportsradio to preview Sunday’s Patriots-Eagles showdown.
McGinest provided insight into how New England has sustained two decades of excellence, citing excellent coaching and preparation, along with a ton of short-term memory.
“What happened a day ago, Bill [Belichick] doesn’t give a worry to,” McGinest said. “He just moves the team forward.”
That means this year’s Patriots will have their disappointing loss from Super Bowl LII fully in the rear-view mirror.
But what about the one before that?
In 2005, New England beat Philadelphia in a game that sometimes gets lumped in with the Spygate scandal. While there’s never been any proof that any cheating occurred, it often gets brought into the conversation.
When asked a direct question about whether the Patriots cheated in Super Bowl XXXIX, McGinest laughed out loud.
“That’s a crazy question,” he said. “Why would I ever think that? You’re talking about the Eagles?”
Then, McGinest lowered the boom.
“I don’t know by just physically whooping somebody’s ass, how is that cheating?”
“I don’t know by just physically whooping somebody’s ass, how is that cheating?” — @WillieMcGinest on the Patriots’ Super Bowl XXXIX win over the #Eagles
Case closed. Although to be fair, the final score in that game was 24-21. Not exactly a complete “ass whooping.”
Eagles Offense Wasn’t Prepared in 2005
Willie McGinest, who retired in 2008 with 86 career sacks, was a handful in Super Bowl XXXIX. He was a hybrid linebacker who could line up in the stand-up Joker role or put his knuckles in the ground.
He recalled the Eagles offense not being ready for the challenge and his Patriots out-scheming Andy Reid’s team in 2005.
“We didn’t even play the same defense they had seen half the year, so there was a little confusion there,” McGinest told 94WIP SportsRadio. “I think we confused them with our scheme and then the turnovers and making big plays. You can’t have three turnovers in big games against good teams and expect to win.”
Eagles quarterback Donovan McNabb threw three interceptions in the Super Bowl loss, including two ill-timed picks to Patriots safety Rodney Harrison. He even had an interception called back due to a penalty and threw another one on the next play.
Still, questions have lingered about the Patriots secretly videotaping practices. Nothing has ever been proven.
“It’s bogus,” McGinest said. “The players are the ones that go out there and execute and win football games.”
McGinest Would Have Five Rings if Patriots Cheated
Willie McGinest has long denied the accusations of the Patriots ever cheating during his 12 prolific seasons in New England.
In 2015, McGinest defended his former team by claiming that he’d have five Super Bowl rings if there were any truth to the rumors.
“We were never shown tape from any teams practicing,” he told NFL Network’s Total Access. “Instead of three Super Bowls, we would have had five. You give us the answers to the test then no team would have come close to beating us.”