Former Globe / current Herald columnist Ron Borges once famously boasted that he’d separate Bill Belichick from his lunch money. After the Patriots’ resident Hooded Casanova let the unbeaten Colts off the hook with an ill-advised decision to go for it on 4th and 2, deep in New England territory while nursing a 6 point lead with 2:08 remaining, Borges asks, “is there an insanity defense for football coaches?” From Monday’s Herald :
Maybe the Twinkie defense that got Dan White a reduced sentence after assasinating the mayor of San Francisco and a city councilman named Harvey Milk might work. A Bay area shrink named Martin Blinder convinced a jury that White™s œcapacity for rational thought had been diminished by eating junk food so maybe there™s a defense for anything. Anybody check Belichick™s lunch box?
With 2:08 to play and a decision to be made, Belichick made the kind of choice Shemp would have made because even Larry and Moe would know better. He turned to his defense and said, œTo fight this Lord Manning, strong enough you are not.
At that moment, on an evening when Randy Moss and Tom Brady [stats] played out of their minds, Bill Belichick went out of his mind. The decision he had to make, in the opinion of NBC analyst and former Colts head coach Tony Dungy, really was no decision at all. It was a no-brainer. For a genius that can be a problem.
œAs much as you respect Peyton Manning you have to punt the ball, Dungy said.
Mere mortals punt downfield and try to put as much real estate between their end zone and Manning™s right arm. Geniuses commit hubris instead.
Tom Brady defended Belichick’s call after the game, citing his coach’s “confidence in the team”. On this occasion, said confidence didn’t extend to the New England defense.
Oh, the life of a sports columnist! If he’d punted and still lost, the author would likely openly wonder – with over aggrandizing color – why Belichick had suddenly lost confidence in his offense. Surely, a ball moving juggernaut like the Pats can gain 2 little yards in the clutch…
it’s risk vs. reward. If Belichick was that petrified of putting the ball back in Peyton’s hands, any likelihood of giving Manning at shot from the N.E. 28 with two minutes to go should’ve been even scarier. Even at the 50 yard line, this would’ve been a questionable move. It’s been argued today the Pats defense hadn’t demonstrated they were capable of stopping Manning in the 4th quarter, but that’s not a great argument for risking giving the Colts such amazing field position.
I’ll say this much for Belichick. After blowing a 17 point, 4th quarter lead, it’s probably better for N.E. that Belichick be pilloried than his team be called chokers.
This reminds me of when the wife will put down her air hockey striker and walk away when I’m beating her by more than 5 points thereby taking away the opportunity for me to fairly win the game. I’m sure that the Colts don’t really feel like they beat the Pats since they were given the game on a sliver platter, gift-wrapped and personally delivered by Belichick. It’s reverse psychology!! This man is a genius!!!