9 burning questions about the Patriots’ game-losing, lateral-filled final play vs. the Raiders

Was it supposed to be a lateral-filled play (Bill Belichick won’t say). Could Mac Jones have run for a TD if he caught it (lol no).

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.

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.