ALLEN PARK -- Matt Patricia never told the Lions he was indicted for a sex crime in 1996. The Lions never found out about it, either, despite conducting a background check before hiring him in February.
And they weren't the only ones in the dark.
"The New England Patriots were not aware of the matter which recently came to light," Bill Belichick said in a statement issued through the team. Patricia spent 14 years with the club, the last six of which was spent as defensive coordinator.
Everything Matt Patricia said about the sexual assault allegations against him
It wasn't hard to see the emotion that was boiling under the surface.