Bill Belichick doesn’t need Tom Brady to win football games. But as we witnessed Monday night, he needs an actual quarterback.
Bill Belichick doesn’t need Tom Brady to win football games. But as we witnessed Monday night, he needs an actual quarterback. The Kansas City Chiefs defeated the New England Patriots 26-10 Monday night, capitalizing on four turnovers, three of which can be directly attributed to Brian Hoyer and Jarrett Stidham, the two struggling pass-throwers who attempted to fill in for Cam Newton while he was sidelined with Covid-19. Stidham also threw a pick-six, but the pass flew through Julian Edelman’s hands, so we’ll be kind and strike that from his record. Belichick devised a master game plan to contain Patrick Mahomes, and it worked for the first half. The Chiefs were held without a touchdown in the first half for only the third time since Mahomes took over as QB. All of those games have occurred against the Patriots. Using a smaller and faster defensive lineup with six defensive backs, Belichick mixed coverages and blanketed the field. Kansas City didn’t score its first touchdown until there were 42 seconds left in the third quarter, when Tyreek Hill rushed in a six-yard shovel pass. The Chiefs can only be contained for so long, of course. They boast an exceptional quarterback and too many playmakers. They scored on their opening drive of the fourth quarter, too, when the speedy Mecole Hardman raced into the end zone after another short pass from Mahomes. That drive turned when Mahomes scrambled on 3rd-and-9, picking up 18 yards and a first down. Though the Patriots successfully covered receivers down the field, Mahomes was able to move the chains himself.
