Belichick Takes All The Blame For Sunday's Penalty: 'We Were Wrong'
BOSTON (CBS) - New England Patriots head coach Bill Belichick said he didn't think his team did anything wrong on Sunday when they were whistled for a "unsportsmanlike conduct" penalty in overtime against the New York Jets, but changed his tune on Monday.
Patriots defensive lineman Chris Jones was flagged for the penalty after the Jets missed a potential game-winning field goal in overtime on Sunday. Jones was whistled for pushing a teammate into the Jets' formation, giving New York a first down and another 15 yards. A few plays later the Jets connected on a 42-yarder to give them a 30-27 overtime win.
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Belichick said after the game he didn't think Jones should have been whistled because he wasn't pushing from the "second level," but admitted on Monday that is not the case when he reviewed the rule following the loss.
"Obviously, we are wrong. What else is there to say?" Belichick said on his Monday morning conference call with reporters. "We were wrong."
"Look, it's our job to understand the rules," said Belichick. "Whatever the bottom line is, we didn't do it properly. What else is there to say?"
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Jones took the blame after the game on Sunday, but Belichick said all the blame falls on him.
"The field goal play at the end, I think Chris is obviously trying to do the right thing by stepping up and taking responsibility," Belichick said. "But that's not his responsibility, it's ours. We just have to do a better job of coaching that. It's not his fault, that's on me [and] the coaching staff, we just have to do a better job there."
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"We have to coach him better," Belichick added later in the call. "What he did was basically what he was being told to do. We just have to coach it better. That's not Chris Jones' fault."
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