In a tough 24-21 loss to the Buffalo Bills, the New England Patriots made some odd decisions.
Those decisions were led by this team’s inability to do anything trustworthy on the field, but they were still extremely uncharacteristic. In a lot of cases this season, it’s led to passiveness where the Patriots could’ve been more aggressive — not really the opposite.
Bill Belichick’s fear to take shots likely stems from the Patriots’ loss to the Kansas City Chiefs, when Brian Hoyer failed to walk away with any points in the redzone because of third down mishaps. But, playing more aggressive likely would’ve helped the Patriots defeat the Bills.
In Week 8, the first peculiar decision came on the 16-yard line heading into the first half, where the Patriots where 3rd-and-1 with a shot at the end zone. Instead of taking that shot, Belichick kicked the field goal and walked into halftime with a 7-6 score.
“To ensure the three points,” is Belichick’s explanation for that play. It makes sense, but that approach doesn’t beat a team with this much offensive firepower.
In the second half, the Patriots scored a two-point conversion and tied the game at 14. Instead of kicking the ball deep and trusting his defense, who had a solid day, he decided to do an onside kick that didn’t work. The Bills came down that drive and scored the go-ahead touchdown that ended the game essentially.
“We were trying to make a positive play,” Belichick told reporters.
It was simple, he didn’t trust his players and had to perform some trickery to try and have a chance to win the division. It didn’t work and the Patriots are now 2-5, and it has the potential of getting a lot worse.
