Former Bears QB Jim McMahon slams Bill Belichick for making false promises

Former NFL quarterback Jim McMahon recently spoke out about his stint with the Cleveland Browns under coach Bill Belichick. McMahon was in training camp with the Browns when Belichick was head coach in 1995. But the quarterback's time in Cleveland was cut short as he didn't make the team out of camp.

The two-time Super Bowl winner was recently a guest on the "850 ESPN Cleveland" radio show and recounted the story of what really went down. Jim McMahon said he was asked to move to Cleveland and was told by Belichick that he would be paid regardless of not being on the team.

"After training camp [Belichick] called me in and says, ‘Hey we’re gonna have to release you. We’ve got a lot of guys hurt. We need some roster spots,'” McMahon said. “Then he said, ‘Hey no. But we really want you, we need you here.’ I said what are you telling me, Bill? He goes, ‘I want you to move here.’

"If I’m gonna be here. I move my family here. They’re gonna be here for six months with me. I gotta find a hockey team for my sons. They were big into hockey at the time. So don’t screw me around. And he said ‘We’re gonna take care of you … We’ll pay you to sit out.’"

According to the NFL rule book, a player can't be paid to sit out.

McMahon was briefly with the Browns in 1995 when Belichick was the head coach.https://t.co/SKFtPgjx8i

— BroBible (@BroBible) May 19, 2021

Jim McMahon calls Belichick a liar

Jim McMahon said that after moving to Cleveland, he wasn't paid game checks. He didn't start or dress for a game until Week 8. He was active for just three weeks during the season for which he got paid.

Jim McMahon also recalled an altercation he had with the franchise's general manager that eventually led to him asking for his release.

“I confronted the GM at the time...and I said, ‘Hey man, I need my money. My wife was just in a wreck and I don’t want to deal with insurance.’ He looks at me and says, ‘Well, maybe we’ll pay you, maybe we wont.’

"I lost it. I just snapped. I grabbed him by the neck and threw his head against the wall and said, ‘You’re gonna pay me my money.” Then I started realizing what I was doing and I’m looking around the hallway to see if there were any cameras. I stopped hitting him and he slid down the wall.”

Jim McMahon said he spoke to Vinnie Testaverde and Eric Zeier on his way out and aimed one final parting shot at Belichick.

"I walk back into the QB meeting and just said 'Hey boys, I’ll see you all later. I’m outta here’. The coach said, ‘Have you talked Bill?’ I said, 'You can tell Bill to kiss my a**. He’s a lying piece of s**t.’ Then I was gone. The very next day I was up in Green Bay.”

#Bears Legend Jim McMahon on Career, Injuries https://t.co/f3f7kI7tv2

— TSC News - The Sports Courier (@SportsCourier) May 17, 2021

After being released from the Browns, Jim McMahon signed with the Green Bay Packers, where he was Brett Favre's backup and won the Super Bowl in 1996.