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Bill Belichick, like you and I, is a human being and sometimes human beings get embarrassed. But unlike you and I, who don’t do our jobs in front of millions of people who all think they know better, Belichick got embarrassed Monday night on national television, which had to hurt for him but feel good to a lot of NFL fans.
If you missed it – the Patriots got blown out at home against a Bears team that has struggled a lot this year. And while the final score, 33-14, is part of the story, it’s not the main part of the tale as to why the man in the hoodie looked silly.
Belichick looked, well, like us last night – he made what seemed to be a panic move, had it work out for a few minutes, and then had it all come crashing down to earth for everyone to see. Oh, and now there really isn’t a clear path to take to make things OK again, which isn’t great but very relatable.
I’m talking, of course, about the Patriots’ QB situation. Belichick put Mac Jones back in the starting lineup after the QB had missed three games with an ankle injury. Jones’ sixth pass of the evening was an INT and it turned out to be his last pass of the evening as he was pulled by Belichick for rookie Bailey Zappe.
The kid, who won his first two games as a starter, immediately threw a TD pass and then led the Patriots on another TD drive and suddenly it looked like Zappe Fever was a real thing and was about to take over the entire New England region.
But those would be the only points of the night for Belichick and Co. The heavy favorites went down without a fight in the second half and fell to 3-4 on the season. Zappe looked like a rookie the rest of the night and his last pass of the night, like Jones’, was an interception.
The high hopes going into a game against the mediocre Bears are gone and things will only get more awkward and confusing for the Patriots as they try to figure out who their No. 1 QB is, or if they even have a No. 1 guy.
Starting Jones and then pulling him quickly and not putting him in again and then not having much to say about it after the game was not a good look, especially for a guy with a million Super Bowl rings who has always seemed to have a good feel for how to do things.
Belichick has had a lot of answers in his years with the Patriots but now he better find one, and quick, for his QB situation or things could get even worse for a team and a coach that totally flopped on Monday Night Football.
Quick hits: NFL power rankings… Best Manningcast Moments… Bryce Harper’s awesome reaction… And more.
– Our latest NFL power rankings are out and have a couple of legends – Tom Brady and Aaron Rodgers – falling down the charts.
– Here are the five best moments from last night’s Manningcast, including the great Bill Burr being hilarious a few times.
– Lip-readers caught Bryce Harper saying the coolest thing in the dugout after his legendary home run.
– Here are18 photos of Kate Upton and Justin Verlander through the years.
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