Patriots owner Robert Kraft, left, let Bill Belichick go on a spending spree during free agency with the hopes of reversing last year's 7-9 season. (AP photo)

Losing wasn’t fun. So New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft made sure his organization, especially Bill Belichick, went out and did something to improve last year’s 7-9 disaster.

What followed, two weeks ago, was the most expensive free agent splurge in Patriots – and perhaps NFL – history, with $160 million in guaranteed money handed out.

Kraft talked about that, about the current Patriots quarterback situation, about letting Tom Brady leave via free agency, and admitted the Patiots have done a poor job drafting in the last few years, creating the need to rebuild the team first through free agency in a half hour-long media conference call on Wednesday.

First, Kraft acknowledged that the Patriots, suddenly and uncharacteristically were armed with tons of cap space in a year where the salary cap was going down, not up. Thus they had to make a splurge because their draft picks have not worked out to the level they wanted.

“If you want to have a good consistent winning football team, you can’t do it in free agency, you have to do it through the draft,” he said. “I don’t feel we’ve done the greatest job the last few years. I really hope and I believe I’ve seen a different approach this year.

“In the end it all comes down to what happens on the field and how well people are executing. You really don’t know about a draft until after two years.”

Kraft also holds out hope that last year’s draft will still prove to be fruitful, noting that without the OTAs, mini camps, etc., they were thrown to the fire.

“Last year younger players were really disadvantaged,” he said, “because they didn’t have the time to come and learn and be part of it.”

But he and Belichick talked about the best approach to attack the rebuild.

“Bill and I were able to work this out with what we think is best for the franchise,” Kraft said. “It’s been that way, he’s been with us 21 years, and he’s the best to do it. I’m pretty happy with our working relationship.

“That (free agency) hasn’t been the style we’ve used, but conditions have changed. …We were in a pretty unique situation. …Instead of having 10 to 12 teams competing with us, we only had two or three.”

THE QUARTERBACK POSITION

Kraft was asked flat out if he was happy with the situation at quarterback, with the team right now banking on veteran Cam Newton after a disappointing year, and now third-year QB Jarrett Stidham, who has yet to impress.

“Look, I think we have, uh, we have a situation where we have at this point in time, we’re trying to do what the best thing for us is,” he said. “In fairness to Cam, I’m not sure he had the proper weapons around him, then he got Covid.

“I don’t know if Jarrett has ever gotten a fair shot, so we’ll have to wait and see what happens.”

Kraft later added “We all know long term we have to find a way, either Jarrett Stidham or someone new we bring in. … “The quarterback is the most important position on a team, we know that. Touches the ball 70 times (a game). We have to get that position solidified.”

Kraft feels Newton showed what he could do before he tested positive for COVID, talked about how popular he is with his teammates, etc. He said that Newton’s early signing should help him, that, like the rookies, he was hurt by no off-season work.

“I think that’s what happened with Cam,” he said. “He’s more familiar with what goes on here. … Like younger players from last year, we’ll see what happens this year. …

“I expect to be a contender every year. That’s my objective. Last year was very disappointing. I really do believe Cam getting COVID , what it did to the team, it really changed a lot when we were in a good place. And now we’ll see.”

And he held out hope for Stidham.

“I think he’s a great young man, and I know he’s eager to compete and look for an opportunity to play,” he said. “One thing I like he’s shown great initiative putting these workouts together in California.

“I’m not sure he’s really been tested. I’m a big fan of his.”

BRADY REVISITED

Of course, Kraft was a huge fan of Brady. But the quarterback’s departure was a decision the owner allowed the player to make, via the contract that was agreed to the previous summer. To not allow Brady to have free agency, he said, was “not the right thing” to do.

“Look, I would’ve loved for him to have retired as a Patriot, everybody knew that,” he said. ” But in life things happen in a way you have to balance a lot of things. After 20 years, I thought he was entitled to make a decision on what’s best for him and we gave him the ability to do that. … “It’s like marriages sometimes,” Kraft added. “Everybody on the outside doesn’t always know what’s going on.”

And, he’d let any other player with a track record like Brady’s do the same thing.

“After 20 years, with any player, I’ll make this commitment to any player in the future,” he said. “Any player who in 20 years takes us to win six Super Bowls …We could have kept him …but it’s not the right thing.”

Kraft also dispelled the notion that Brady’s Super Bowl victory this year ignited the Patriots’ splurge.

“I love Tom Brady, and he’s great, but he’s moved on,” Kraft said. “What happened here last year was not something to our liking. We had to make the corrections.

“We were in a unique cap situation this coming year going forward, and it allowed us to try things. We missed to a certain extent in the draft and this was our best opportunity.”

So it was not Brady at all?

“To be frank, no, this is about what’s doing right for our team,” he said.

REVERSAL OF FORTUNE

Kraft stuck by his record as owner, noting the Patriots had one home playoff game before he bought the team, and then 27 during his tenure, with just four of them losses.

But that didn’t make last year any easier to take.

“It was horrible,” he said. “After my family, the Patriots are the most important thing in my life. … The privilege I have of owning this team in my hometown, our family is a custodian of a pulic asset. The bottome line with this team is winning, that’s what this business is. When we don’t, it’s not a good feeling.

“The bottom line is we want to win and when we don’t we’re not happy.

“We collectively made a decision this is a unique time. Now we’ll see how good our people were in evaluating talent and the chemistry.”

“We’ll see, and we’ll be able to evaluate. …In the end, I trust Coach Belichick’s ability to build a team and put the players in the best position to succeed.”