FOXBORO (CBS) -- Wes Welker was quite clearly joking when he said Sunday night that he enjoyed having a big game and "sticking it" in Bill Belichick's face, but that fact hasn't stopped the comment from becoming a major story line on Monday.

With sports radio buzzing, and opinions varying from "it was a joke and this is a non-story" to "Belichick will bench Welker next week in Seattle," the topic invariably had to come up during Belichick's afternoon meeting with the media on Monday.

Predictably, Belichick didn't shed too much light on the situation.

"No, I didn't really see the comment," Belichick said when asked about Welker's comment. "You should ask him about it, what he meant by it. I don't know."

Reporters later did their due diligence when the Patriots' locker room opened, asking Welker if he wanted to explain his comments.

"It was a joke," Welker told them. "Bill and I ... have a good relationship."

Welker was asked by Michael Felger on Comcast Sports Net on Sunday night about how much better it feels to turn in a 13-catch performance rather than a three-catch performance.

LISTEN: Welker Says 'It Was A Joke'

"Yeah it's kind of nice to stick it in Bill's face once in a while," Welker said while smiling and winking. "So this is definitely a good one."

It didn't appear to be made with ill intent, but it nevertheless became the joke that launched a thousand debates.