Bill Belichick on Malcolm Butler benching: 'The final decision is what I said it was'

— -- MINNEAPOLIS -- New England Patriots coach Bill Belichick is still keeping his reasons for Malcolm Butler's Super Bowl benching in-house.

Belichick was asked Monday to explain Butler's benching for emotionally invested fans who feel an emptiness that the cornerback didn't play in New England's 41-33 loss to the Philadelphia Eagles.

"I appreciate the question, but it would be a much longer discussion," Belichick said. "There are a lot of things that go into that. In the end, the final decision is what I said it was."

After the game Sunday night, Belichick had said it wasn't a disciplinary decision.

"We put the players and game plan out there that we thought would be the best, like we always do," he said Sunday.

That Butler wasn't a part of the game plan was a surprise, as he played 97.8 percent of the defensive snaps in the regular season.

Butler said after the game that the Patriots "gave up" on him and that he "could have changed that game."

"I respect Malcolm's competitiveness, and I'm sure that he felt like he could have helped," Belichick said Monday. "I'm sure other players felt the same way. In the end, we have to make the decisions that we feel are best for the football team, and that's what we did, that's what I did."

Butler played just one snap in Super Bowl LII, on the punt return team. Eric Rowe started in his place at cornerback.