Category Archives: New England Sports

The sports world all week has been abuzz about the now infamous call to go for it on 4th-and-2 on the wrong side of the 50 this past Sunday against the Colts. Beth posted an EXCELLENT analysis of both the arguments for and against the call, and if you haven’t read it, scroll down or click here.

I’ve hung back from the debate on the Patriot Act first because my post probably wouldn’t have been printable, and then because as all the arguments were floating about, I wanted to soak it in and reflect a little more. As the saying goes, “hindsight is 20/20,” and if the Patriots had made the first down, Belichick would have likely been hailed as a genius for not letting Peyton Manning get the ball and beat him again. However, it didn’t happen, and his coaching genius is now being questioned. At first, as you can probably figure out, I thought it was a terrible call, and was saying as much before Brady hiked the ball on 4th-and-2 Sunday night. I still am of the opinion that Belichick should have punted, but I am more understanding of why he made the decision.

Everyone has their opinion about what the proper call was, but I wonder if we would have felt any better if Peyton got the ball on the Colts’ 30-yard line and drove 70 yards in a minute to take the lead. Certainly, the calls into WEEI and every other sports show would have been how the defense blew it, Belichick’s defense is outdated (heard that earlier this season on NFL Network’s “Playbook” program), and the Patriots are no longer clutch. All of those arguments would have been just as legitimately debated as “The Call.” Would we not have still had that nasty pit in our stomachs and the sleepless night that followed? Probably, but we will never know. Could the defense have stopped Manning with 70 yards between them and the end zone? I understand now why “The Call” was made. Convert 4th-and-2 into a 1st-and-10, and the game is pretty much over. The Pats could run most of the clock out, if not all of it with another conversion, and Peyton wouldn’t have the time to score. Consider this (I believe Jon Gruden made this point): You have one chance to win the game. Do you put the ball in the hands of Tom Brady, or do you rely on a young defense that was depleted in the pass rush due to injuries? I’d probably choose Tom Brady 9/10 times, but not in this instance. However, it is a valid and good point.

I think that “The Call” can be debated, but not criticized. There is a difference of opinion and we do not possess the knowledge of what would have happened had the ball been punted. Perhaps, had it been punted and Peyton scored anyway, we may have been crying, “They should have went for it and not given Peyton the chance to score!” Debate is legitimate, criticism is useless. Consider this point as well: On NFL Total Access Wednesday, NFL VP of Officiating Mike Pereira was asked about whether the ball was spotted properly on the 4th-and-2 play. He notes that it is very difficult to see where Faulk has control, and even if Belichick could have challenged the play, or it occurred after the two-minute warning and the booth challenged, there was no indisputable evidence to overturn the call. HOWEVER, he also states that had the Faulk been ruled down past the 30 and the Colts challenged, there would have been no indisputable evidence to change the ruling on the field. Very interesting.

I do feel that we can legitimately criticize how the entire final series was handled. That is on the coaching staff. To start, a timeout was called before the first play was ever run. I have NEVER seen that before. The wrong personnel was on the field for the play called, and that is the coaching staff’s fault, especially after having an entire TV timeout to figure out the next play. Next, on 3rd-and-2, and incomplete pass, which stopped the clock. If they were of the mindset that they were in 4-down mode, wouldn’t a quick run up the middle have been a better call? Even if it gained no yards, it trumps an incomplete pass because it forces the Colts to burn a timeout. If it gains a yard or so, it leaves the door open for a Brady sneak, which I can’t recall a single time he has not converted. Then, after the 3rd-and-2 incomplete pass, the Pats burn their final timeout calling the punt team off the field and putting the offense back out, which brings to mind whether they were certain they were in 4-down territory. Belichick had mentioned in press conferences since “The Call” that the play they used they had worked on “for a while,” which leads me to believe going for it was a decision made before the season even started. If so, the coaching staff had very poor clock management, which is not something we are used to here in New England. We are used to the intentional safety, the clock-killing, game sealing plays, the drives to win Super Bowls, etc. The coaching staff is going to need to review their strategy and make the necessary improvements, or the play-offs will not last too long for the Pats.

Now, it’s on to revenge against the Jets and Rex “Tears for Fears” Ryan. This time it’s in Foxboro. This time, Wes Welker is playing. This time, Brady has his timing down. This time, there is plenty of tape of the Jets’ defense and Mark Sanchez. It should be interesting.

Go Pats!