Mazz: Bill Belichick quit and the Patriots are tanking
In the giving season, Bill Belichick gave up. Or maybe we should just say that Bill Belichick quit and that the Patriots are tanking.
In the end, that may prove for the better, of course, the Patriots now just three losses away from a 3-14 record and no worse than the No. 2 pick in next year’s annual NFL draft. But if we’re going to be consistent, you can’t celebrate the win over Pittsburgh earlier this month and celebrate yesterday’s loss to the Kansas City Chiefs in Foxboro. It just doesn’t make sense.
FOXBOROUGH, MASSACHUSETTS – DECEMBER 17: New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft and Head Coach Bill Belichick look on from the sideline before the game against the Kansas City Chiefs at Gillette Stadium on December 17, 2023 in Foxborough, Massachusetts. (Photo by Maddie Meyer/Getty Images)
Belichick addressed – or tried to – some of these very issues following yesterday’s 27-17 defeat to Kansas City yesterday, though the explanations left somethings to be desired. The coach who has long preached the importance of playing 60 minutes pretty much called it a day at 45 in Week 15, throwing just five passes in the final 14:50 of the game with his team needing three scores to catch the Chiefs.
Along the way, Belichick punted on a fourth-and-3 from the Patriots’ 42-yard line while trailing by 17 points with a full quarter to play. He tried to win with his defense and special teams, something that is at the core of the Belichick problem. The NFL is now an offensive league, after all, and the game has passed him by.
Or so it seems.
“I think we could have went a little faster, just definitely being down three scores in that last quarter,” Patriots running back Ezekiel Elliott told the media after the defeat. “But I don’t know. It’s not up to me.”
Belichick’s version of the passive approach late in the game?
“It’s not a question of not wanting to go for it, it’s a question of doing what you feel like is best at that point in time,” the coach said of his early fourth-quarter decision to punt.
Let’s make something clear here: the Patriots probably weren’t winning yesterday, just as they haven’t won for 78.6 percent of the games they have played this season. And maybe that’s for the better. Then there is the fact that Belichick may even be right. Two series after the punt, the Patriots intercepted Patrick Mahomes – albeit on a gift from Chiefs wide “receiver” (and we use the term loosely) Kadarius Toney – but the facts are the facts. Belichick and the Patriots chose to play defense because they can’t play offense, which is something that has been true for two seasons now.
FOXBOROUGH, MASSACHUSETTS – DECEMBER 17: New England Patriots head coach Bill Belichick looks on from the sideline during the game against the Kansas City Chiefs at Gillette Stadium on December 17, 2023 in Foxborough, Massachusetts. (Photo by Maddie Meyer/Getty Images)
As things stand, the Patriots (3-11) hold the No. 2 pick and rest just one game behind the Carolina Panthers (2-12), who defeated the Atlanta Falcons yesterday. There are just three games to play. New England now travels to Denver and Buffalo – both playoff hopefuls that have a great deal to play for – before wrapping up the season at home against the New York Jets in Week 18. What we can pretty much say now, definitively, is that the Pats will try to compete in those games for at least a half. But if the Pats get down by two scores or more – and do so while continuing to turn the ball over – Belichick will pull the plug on his downright offensive offense. And the Pats will continue to turn over from 2023 to 2024, when they are likely to be with a new coach and, presumably, a new quarterback.
What happens next week with regard to the Patriots’ approach?
Good question.
But you’ll probably know by early in the third quarter.
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5. The Shanahans
FOXBORO, MA – OCTOBER 20: Coach Mike Shanahan of the Denver Broncos watches the action against the New England Patriots at Gillette Stadium on October 20, 2008 in Foxboro, Massachusetts. (Photo by Jim Rogash/Getty Images)
The encounters between Belichick and Mike Shanahan were relatively sporadic over the years, but know this: Belichick always has held both father and son (Kyle) in very high regard. Belichick and Mike Shanahan went head-to-head five times when Shanahan was the head coach of the Denver Broncos during Belichick’s time in New England. Denver won five of those, including the only playoff meeting, at Denver, in early 2006.
As for Kyle Shanahan, his only career meeting with Belichick produced a 33-6 San Francisco 49ers victory at Foxboro in 2020. Of course, he was also the offensive coordinator of the 2016 Atlanta Falcons team that built a 28-3 lead over the Patriots in the Super Bowl before self-destructing.
4. Ray Lewis and the Baltimore Ravens
FOXBORO, MA – JANUARY 20: Ray Lewis #52 of the Baltimore Ravens celebrates after defeating the New England Patriots in the 2013 AFC Championship game at Gillette Stadium on January 20, 2013 in Foxboro, Massachusetts. The Baltimore Ravens defeated the New England Patriots 28-13. (Photo by Al Bello/Getty Images)
Wait … what is this? Obviously, Lewis wasn’t quarterback or, for that matter, a coach. But during years in which Belichick and Tom Brady were paired, there may not have been a more challenging matchup. During Belichick’s years with the Patriots, the Ravens led by Ray Lewis faced them eight times, going 3-5. Four of the Baltimore losses were by six points or fewer, three of those were by a field goal, one of those was in overtime. And in the playoffs, the Ravens went 2-1 against the Pats and all three games were in Foxboro. During the Belichick era, nobody has ever been less intimidated coming into Foxboro than the Ravens led by Ray Lewis.
3. Andy Reid
FOXBORO, MA – JANUARY 16: Head coach Bill Belichick of the New England Patriots and head coach Andy Reid of the Kansas City Chiefs shake hands after the AFC Divisional Playoff Game at Gillette Stadium on January 16, 2016 in Foxboro, Massachusetts. The Patriots defeated the Chiefs 27-20. (Photo by Al Bello/Getty Images)
If we’re talking trends, Reid probably deserves to be higher on this list. Since taking over the Kansas City Chiefs, Reid has beaten the Patriots with both Alex Smith and Patrick Mahomes at quarterback, which speaks volumes about his tactical ability on the offensive side of the ball. Reid has never beaten Belichick in the postseason, though it should be noted that the Patriots won the coin toss in the only meeting with Reid as coach of the Chiefs, when Kansas City dropped a 37-31 decision in overtime during the only postseason matchup between Brady and Mahomes.
Prior to that, Reid went 0-4 against Belichick as head coach of the Philadelphia Eagles, who also lost to the Patriots in the Super Bowl. Belichick had the better quarterback then – and the better team.
2. Peyton Manning
DENVER, CO – JANUARY 19: Head coach Bill Belichick of the New England Patriots congratulates Peyton Manning #18 of the Denver Broncos after the Broncos defeated the New England Patriots 26 to 16 during the AFC Championship game at Sports Authority Field at Mile High on January 19, 2014 in Denver, Colorado. (Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images)
Yes, we look at Manning primarily in terms of Tom Brady, quarterback vs. quarterback. But truth be told, Belichick was the true matchup, at least from the standpoint of defending Manning. The took met a total of 24 times in the regular season and playoffs with Belichick holding a 15-9 advantage, though Manning went 3-2 against Belichick in five playoff games, two of which took place in Foxboro. In terms of sheer volume, there was no greater challenger to the Pats than Manning. On many levels, the Pats and Manning were the football equivalent of Ali-Frazier. They always seemed to live up to the hype.
1. Tom Coughlin
INDIANAPOLIS, IN – FEBRUARY 05: Head coach Tom Coughlin of the New York Giants poses with the Vince Lombardi Trophy after the Giants defeated the Patriots by a score of 21-17 in Super Bowl XLVI at Lucas Oil Stadium on February 5, 2012 in Indianapolis, Indiana. (Photo by Rob Carr/Getty Images)
The best matchups are always apples to apples, so this one is nice and clean. Belichick and Coughlin were contemporaries who served on the same staff under Bill Parcells. Coughlin is an offensive guy. Belichick is a defensive guy. As a coach, Coughlin was as unintimidated by Belichick as Ray Lewis was; as a tactician, he was every bit as capable as Manning. The two went 3-3 against one another, but Coughlin won the Big ones, going 2-0 against the Belichick in the Super Bowl, including a Super Bowl XLII win that ended the Patriots’ bid for a perfect season.
The outcomes of Belichick’s last five meetings against Coughlin were: 38-35 (W), 14-17 (L, SB), 20-24 (L), 17-21 (L, SB) and 27-26 (W). Against everyone else on this list, Belichick can basically claim an edge. But not against Coughlin, at least when it came to their head-to-head meetings.
