The Patriots’ former head coach spoke about a variety of issues
Even though they are 1-6 and looking like one of the worst teams in the NFL, Bill Belichick would not go as far as to label the New England Patriots as “soft.” The team’s former head coach said as much on Monday, after the Patriots’ 32-16 defeat at the hands of the Jacksonville Jaguars in London.
Following that game, head coach Jerod Mayo called the Patriots “a soft football team across the board.” While he felt the need to clarify the statement on Monday — not the first time this has happened — the damage was already done.
Mayo’s predecessor, meanwhile, did not agree. Appearing on the Pat McAfee Show, he went to bat for the Patriots’ players, many of whom were acquired under his leadership
“I’m kind of hurt for those guys because to call them soft — they’re not soft,” he said. “They were the best team in the league last year against the run. Those guys, they went out there and did it even though we couldn’t score many points offensively.
“So, I feel bad for the defensive players on that one because those guys, that’s a tough group. Jon Jones, [Davon] Godchaux, [Deatrich] Wise [Jr.], [Anfernee] Jennings, [Joshua] Uche, those are all tough players. They’ll strap it up and go. [Kyle] Dugger, I mean they are tough guys.”
During his postgame press conference after the Patriots’ sixth straight loss, Mayo identified three areas that led him to the conclusion about the team’s perceived softness. His squad was unable to succeed in the running game on either side of the ball, and failed to cover kicks after allowing a 96-yard punt return touchdown.
New England’s inability to stop the run has been a particular issue lately, and quite the fall from grace for a defense that ranked first in the NFL in yards per rushing attempt last year. While no two seasons are alike, and the Patriots have suffered some prominent personnel losses since the start of training camp, the decline on that side of the ball is noteworthy.
For Belichick, whose son Brian is the Patriots’ current safeties coach, that does not say anything about the players’ toughness, though.
“The Patriots led the league last year in rushing defense, yards per carry; No. 1 in the league. And this year, they’re way down in the 20s somewhere. It’s the same guys,” he said.
“They re-signed Jennings. They re-signed [Jahlani] Tavai. They re-signed, obviously, Dugger. Marcus Jones and [Christian] Gonzalez have been healthy all year; they were both on IR at this point last year. You got Wise. You got Godchaux. You got Keion White. You got [Marte] Mapu. You have Gonzalez — three rookies from last year. It’s a lot of the same players, and in some cases I would say more.”
Belichick also briefly spoke about Patriots rookie quarterback Drake Maye, who showed promise in his second career start.
“I think Drake Maye’s done some good things,” he said. “In the end, we’ll see how it goes when situations get a little more competitive and all that.”
While New England’s long-time head coach expressed some positivity about Maye, he did not hold back when talking about another issue that plagued his former club on Sunday: the aforementioned lack of punt coverage on a 96-yard return touchdown. One part of that play in particular seemed to bother Belichick.
“I don’t understand why punters just want to punt the ball straight down the middle against good returners,” he said. “It’s hard when you lay it right down the middle. Right down the middle of the field, and you have to cover all 53-and-a-third yards and you out-kick the coverage — that’s what’s going to happen. …
“I get it, [Bryce] Baringer might lead the lead in average — he might, it will be close, he’s right up there. He’s got an 80-yarder, a 70-something-yarder, but they’re so hard to cover. And if you’re going to go right down the middle, then put some hang time on the ball. Get it up there. But those 4-second, 69-yarders, they’re hard to cover.”
Belichick compared Bryce Baringer’s 66-yard punt that ended up getting returned for a score by Jacksonville’s Parker Washington to a play he himself was part of. Back in 2006, the Patriots’ Todd Sauerbrun sent a punt right down the middle to Adam “Pacman” Jones, who ran it back 81 yards for a touchdown.
18 years later, one of Sauberun’s successors in New England made the same mistake. The result was familiar.
“You got to cover the kick wherever it goes and whatever the hang time is. I’m not taking any special teams coverage unit off the hook, even on bad kicks, because they’re going to happen,” Belichick continued.
“But the more of them you lay down the middle, the more you’re asking for trouble, the harder it is. That’s hard. It’s hard to cover the whole field when you got the two gunners as the only guys that can lead, and you got everybody else bottled up in there. It’s just hard.”