Wes Welker Foot Interview Results in Benching

The Wes Welker foot interview was a rarity in the Jets-Patriots buildup. Namely, the Wes Welker foot interview was unique because a Patriot was involved in the talking. While New York is defined by their brash words and baiting, New England makes all of their statements on the field. Therefore, when their tight end made several references to Rex Ryan's fetish on Thursday, it served as a refreshing change of pace. However, the Wes Welker foot interview was not sanctioned by Bill Belichick and the Patriots - which might be why he was benched.

On Thursday, the Patriots star receiver responded to the Jets' constant war of words - in a way. He made references to feet 11 times in his press conference, and it took a while for reporters to get the joke. Yet compared to New York's colorful phrases, it was a mild taunt.

However, the Wes Welker foot interview was apparently no laughing matter to Bill Belichick. CBS's Jim Nantz broke right before the game that he would be benched for the start of the contest. He wasn't injured before hand, so the obvious reason seems to be because of his words.

Ryan would applaud someone for that kind of talk, or at least not condemn it in public. Yet Belichick runs a tighter ship, which has given the Patriots a humorless, all business reputation. That may make them boring - other than their championships and other controversies - but it has historically worked better for them than the Jets' approach.

Whether the Wes Welker foot interview warranted an opening benching could be questionable. New York usually gets away with worse, and their players often aren't disciplined. However, the Patriots are not the Jets, for various reasons.

Still, all this does is confirm New England's vanilla pre-game reputation, which no one will mind if they win today. Their star receiver is benched to start the game, but he still stands to make a big impact later on. He missed their postseason loss last year with a major injury, and is out to make his mark on the playoffs this time.

The Wes Welker foot interview helped him make his mark early, as he may have had the cleverest taunt of this whole loud week. While it might not have been as inflammatory as New York's choices of words, it seemed to have been better thought out.

Since the Patriots didn't lose 45-3 to the Jets last month, and have three rings in the last decade, they have probably earned the right to bad mouth opponents. But Belichick usually chooses not to use that power, and sent another message that his players shouldn't either.

In a few hours, the Wes Welker foot interview and benching will be forgotten, however - depending on what happens now that the rivals have taken the field. Since Tom Brady just threw his first interception in months, with Welker benched, he will likely be back very soon.

Sources

MSNBC.com- "Foot in mouth: Welker starts game on bench"