We’ve also heard discussions about Patriots coach Bill Belichick’s decision not to take a timeout before the interception. The argument in favor of taking one is that it would have left more time for Tom Bradyand the offense to tie the score or retake the lead, something wide receiver Brandon LaFell would have accomplished in a different way after watching Jermaine Kearse’s circus catch set the Seahawks up close to the end zone.
“Once he caught the ball, I was just like I hope the coaches let ‘em score,” LaFell said on NFL Network. “Let ‘em score so we can get the ball back, leaves 50, 40 seconds; they haven’t been able to stop us the whole fourth quarter.”
It’s a technique that Belichick employed the last time the Patriots were in the Super Bowl when Giants running back Ahmad Bradshaw was allowed to score with 57 seconds to play in Super Bowl XLVI. The Patriots didn’t wind up scoring and lost the game 21-17, but there weren’t too many people arguing that the Patriots made the wrong call when a field goal would have beaten them.
That wasn’t the case against the Seahawks, who needed a touchdown that a majority of people seem to feel was guaranteed by putting the ball into Marshawn Lynch’s hands. Belichick bet they wouldn’t get it and it paid off, leaving the second guesses to fall entirely on the Seahawks’ shoulders.
Source: PFT.com
Author: Josh Alper
Julio Cortez, AP Photo
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