Bill Belichick is not a man who suffers fools. So imagine his shock when the New England Patriots not only lost to former assistant Josh McDaniels and his then 5-8 Las Vegas Raiders, but did so in the dumbest way possible.
New England came back from a 17-3 halftime deficit and threatened to make this another one of McDaniels’ fabled blown leads when it took a 24-17 lead with 3:43 to play. But the Patriots’ defense couldn’t hold steady and some questionable officiating made this a 24-24 game with under a minute to play.
The Patriots drove to their own 45-yard line with three seconds to play. And then, the funniest play of the 2022 emerged from the ashes of New England’s ongoing mediocrity and lit up the night sky, bringing light to all corners of the NFL as onlookers took delight in Mac Jones being implanted, perhaps permanently, in the Allegiant Stadium turf.
What just happened?? The @Raiders win on the final play!! #NEvsLV pic.twitter.com/cmKNUuab1k
— NFL (@NFL) December 19, 2022
My first reaction was a loud, chortling guffaw as Jones was treated like a pee-wee football standout trying to tackle a loose mascot. My second was “… what?” And now that I’ve had a chance to reflect on the play, I have more questions.
Several more questions.
1
Did the Patriots know the game was tied?
This isn’t the kind of desperation play you see when the outcome of the game remains in the balance. This is the nonsense you get when one team is down by six, 70 yards from the end zone, and their opponent has trotted out its tight end to play prevent defense.
RAIDERS DOTS OH MY GOD pic.twitter.com/xqG2oK2VwC
— Seth Walder (@SethWalder) December 19, 2022
The Patriots didn’t learn from the Miami Miracle and thus were doomed to repeat it. Only in a much dumber, more hilarious way.
2
Does Bill Belichick not think Mac Jones can throw a football 56 yards?
The Patriots were near midfield. This was legitimate Hail Mary range! 55-ish yards is a long way to throw a football, but most NFL quarterbacks can get there — especially one who’d impressed teammates with his improved arm strength in training camp. And if Jones couldn’t get it there backup Bailey Zappe, who threw a plethora of deep balls at Western Kentucky, could have fit the bill.
Would it have been successful? Probably not. Would it have been the kind of disaster that lives forever alongside the butt fumble? No. And that’s how low the bar has been set by this objectively hilarious failure.
Update: We have an answer. Bill Belichick does not think Mac Jones can throw a football 56 yards.
#Patriots HC Bill Belichick on if they considered a hail mary on the final play:
"Couldn't throw it that far."
— Doug Kyed (@DougKyed) December 19, 2022
3
Was Rhamondre Stevenson supposed to lateral that ball?
Here’s how the Patriots’ skill players have moved down the field along with Stevenson. This doesn’t appear to be the setup for a hook-and-ladder trick play. Jones is calmly walking up the rear like he’s ready for overtime.
On the other hand, the guy in white behind the side judge on the Patriots’ sideline is offensive playcaller Matt Patricia. And he’s clapping as Jakobi Meyers winds up the throw that would serve as Jones’ sacrifice to the football gods. So … it may have been planned? Or he may have just been reacting in real time to a crazy event unfolding before him.
Either way, while Stevenson took accountability after the game, Belichick isn’t saying much either way.
Bill Belichick didn’t expand on the final play of the Patriots loss. “We made a mistake,” he said. pic.twitter.com/03tVlaoBMU
— Chad Graff (@ChadGraff) December 19, 2022
4
Was Jakobi Meyers' best option *really* Mac Jones?
I mean, we know the answer to this one. It’s no. But still, there are only three options behind Meyers to whom he can lateral the ball — likely because his teammates *really* don’t seem to be expecting one.
Jones is so far away the zoomed-in stadium roof camera doesn’t even have him in frame (but Chandler Jones is there. Looming). No. 71 Mike Onwenu is covered. No. 60 David Andrews is not. Getting the ball to Andrews wouldn’t provide any kind of instant success, but it would buy some time. Instead, the ball goes to Jones. Chandler Jones, specifically, who Meyers does not see until it’s far too late.
Jakobi Meyers: “I tried to be a hero. I didn’t see the dude back there.”
— Chad Graff (@ChadGraff) December 19, 2022
5
What was the best case scenario if Mac Jones *did* catch that lateral?
There’s some running room for Jones if he can catch this in stride (he didn’t). All but one Raider is on the other side of the hashmarks, and the one who is is Jones.
He was going to run out of space pretty quickly, however. For Jones to get to the Raiders’ 30 at the far sideline from there, he would have had to cover roughly 36 yards. Las Vegas’s defensive backs, all of whom are much faster than Mac Jones, would have had to cover between 34-38 yards in that same time frame. Unless the Patriot QB, with zero broken tackles to his credit in 27 games as a pro, suddenly got very elusive, a whole lot more lateraling was coming up.
6
Does Mac Jones deserve credit for not making a business decision and *trying* to stop Chandler Jones?
Yes, obviously. But he was giving up 50 pounds of leverage and still tried to go high on the edge rusher instead of his best option — holding onto one of Chandler’s ankles and hanging on for dear life. The “Van Gundy,” scholars call it.
7
Was this all a covert plan to get Mac Jones injured?
Because honestly that makes more sense than “Jakobi Meyers believes his quarterback can score from midfield.”
8
Is this the most embarrassing loss of the Bill Belichick era?
Bill Belichick lost multiple Super Bowls to Eli Manning. He blew a 21-3 lead in the AFC title game to Peyton Manning. His Patriots defense stopped the Bills zero times when they met in the Wild Card round last winter.
This was a painful loss in the middle of a season that was likely going nowhere.
9
Is this the most embarrassing regular season loss of the Bill Belichick era?
The Miami Miracle likely wins out, since it cost the Patriots homefield advantage that year:
Three years ago today… The Miami Miracle 🙌@MiamiDolphins | @KDx32 | #FinsUp pic.twitter.com/h6QRQ1cZS4
— NFL (@NFL) December 9, 2021
But New England still won the Super Bowl last year. And as funny as watching Rob Gronkowski dive helplessly at a runner he had no prayer of catching is, it’s no match for poor Mac Jones and his “Pros vs. Joes” tackle attempt and its extremely relatable outcome.
Other games are up there. Belichick won a coin toss in overtime in 2015 vs. the Jets, elected to defer and lost when New York scored an opening drive touchdown. That cost the Pats homefield advantage before a 20-18 AFC title game loss to the Broncos in Denver, so that might, in fact, be more embarrassing.
But man, this one’s gonna sting for a while.
