Belichick Delivers Zinger In Response To Raiola's Dirty Play, Comment About Patriots Running Up Score
By Ashley Dunkak
@AshleyDunkak
CBS DETROIT - With the game well out of hand Sunday, the Detroit Lions took a knee on their final possession, and center Dominic Raiola dove at the knees of the New England Patriots defensive lineman across from him.
Patriots defensive tackle Vince Wilfork said it was a boneheaded play by Raiola.
"That was stupid," Wilfork said, per ESPN. "I didn't see it, but from what I heard ... you're taking a knee. They'd get mad if we were just to blow up one of their players, so I mean, it's just uncalled for."
Raiola, however, offered no apologies, saying he did what he did because it irked him that New England ran up the score. The Patriots led, 27-9, when they tacked on another touchdown with fewer than two minutes remaining. They had the opportunity to simply run out the clock but elected to continue trying to score.
That did not sit well with Raiola.
"We took a knee, so I cut the nose," Raiola said, according to ESPN. "They went for a touchdown at two minutes; they could have taken three knees and the game could have been over.
"I mean, it's football," Raiola continued. "You want us to keep playing football? Let's play football. No big deal. It's football."
Regardless of his motivation, the center can expect a fine from the league for what can at best be deemed a reckless play.
Patriots head coach Bill Belichick had a witty comeback for Raiola, whose play the NFL is reviewing.
"Well, I'm sure there's a lot of frustration there from Raiola," Belichick said, per a tweet by Boston Globe writer Ben Volin. "That's obvious. They've never beaten us. [He] had a tough day in there dealing with [Vince] Wilfork and [Dont'a] Hightower and those guys. I'd say that was probably frustration."
That - Belichick basically pointing at the scoreboard - might be more aggravating to Raiola than any amount of money the league can dock him.