Keller @ Large: Don't Second Guess Bill Belichick
BOSTON (CBS) - There's no use denying it, Patriots fans.
I heard you loud and clear on 98.5 the Sports Hub.
They had gone 7-1 before the bye week at the end of October, but the defense was giving up a lot of yards and points. The fans weren't happy about it.
And then all of a sudden, Bill Belichick dumps star linebacker Jamie Collins, and fans who still have hair were tearing it out. I distinctly heard at least a couple of distraught fans ask: "What does Belichick think he's doing?"
Or was that Felger & Mazz?
Anyway, that particular question falls under the heading of "some people never learn."
Perhaps you've noticed the past few games, especially during that dominating defensive performance Monday night, that the Pats' defense seems dramatically transformed, hitting harder, giving up less ground, making big plays. Guys you've never heard of, like Kyle Van Noy, Shea McClellin and Eric Rowe, are doing it.
Where'd these guys come from?
A few days before they dumped Collins, Belichick traded a sixth-round draft pick to Detroit for Van Noy. Eleven tackles, eight assists and an interception later, no one is talking about Collins.
They picked up McClellin – last seen blocking a field goal in one of the more athletic plays ever made by a Patriot - from the Bears in the off-season for short money.
Rowe is just a second year player, traded from Philadelphia in the off-season for a conditional draft pick. He looks really good too.
What's the moral of the story?
Don't second guess Belichick.
Because charm – and knowing what you are doing – are not necessarily synonymous.
Listen to Jon's commentary: