Patriots’ Matthew Slater Reveals Decision On His Status For 2020 Season

July 30, 2020

Matthew Slater was very close to choosing to be the seventh Patriots player to sit out for the 2020 NFL season.

The COVID crisis is having an impact on just about everything these days. From health to the economy, it seems to be hurting anything that gets in its way. The NFL is no different. A Patriots great, Matthew Slater almost decided to sit out.

We expected COVID to have an impact on the NFL season and schedule. But maybe we weren’t so sure about how much of an impact this would be. As it turns out, many New England Patriots players have already opted out of the season before training camp even started.

Now, it looks like they almost lost another. Luckily, Slater changed his mind and decided to join his teammates.

On Good Morning Football, Mike Garafolo talked in depth about this decision.

“I was told (Wednesday) that Slater was leaning toward opting out,” Garafolo noted. “(NFL Media’s Ian) Rapoport eventually tracked down Slater, who said, ‘No, it was a tough decision, but I will be playing.’ So there you go, Patriots fans.”

Patriots’ Matthew Slater Reveals Decision On His Status For 2020 Season

Garafolo also explained that other Patriots players could have also chosen to sit out if Matthew Slater chose to sit out this season. “He being a team captain, I gather that some other guys were looking toward Slater to see what he was going to do,” Garafolo said. “So it’s possible this list would have grown even more if Slater had opted out.”

From @gmfb: The #Patriots almost had another opt-out but longtime team captain Matt Slater tells @RapSheet he has decided to play this season. pic.twitter.com/LEQYE3ohKV
— Mike Garafolo (@MikeGarafolo) July 30, 2020

Dont’a Hightower, Patrick Chung, Marcus Cannon, Brandon Bolden, Danny Vitale and Najee Toran have all made the decision to sit out so far. These are some big losses for the Patriots, who are looking to win the AFC East.

It will be very interesting to see if anyone else chooses to opt out. So far, the 2020 season is not lost yet. However, if more and more players start moving in the direction it could cause a chain reaction. This is the last thing the New England Patriots need right now.

What do you guys think about these players sitting out the 2020 season?