So I suppose history will show that Bill Belichick made one of the most foolhardy moves of all time last night; ranking up there with Custer’s attack on the Sioux, or clearing your April schedule for Warriors playoff games. But I’m not joining that chorus this morning.
While Sun Tzu may have frowned on Belichick’s decision to go for it on fourth-and-2 from his own 28 (little known fact: there’s an entire chapter on fourth-down conversions in The Art of War), I’m not going to participate in rank second-guessing. The dilemma he faced was this: Give the ball to Tom Brady and try to get two yards, or give it to Peyton Manning with 1:28 remaining to try and win the game from 60 or 70 yards away.
Forgive Belichick if the latter option seemed a might distasteful. He spent his early coaching days as an assistant with the Giants and head coach of the Browns watching Joe Montana and John Elway forge their legacies with just such opportunities; often against his teams. So, give the ball to Brady to try and get two yards, or give it to this generation’s Montana at the opposite 28 (or closer) with 1:28 left? I’d take the former every time.
As boring and predictable as the NFL is, with its cookie-cutter offensive strategies and paint-by-number coaching decisions, it’s refreshing to see someone do something totally unexpected. Conventional wisdom dictates that you should punt from your own, 28, but you know what? As Miles said to Joel in Risky Business, “Sometimes you gotta say ‘What the f***,’ make your move.” I’ve never particularly been a Belichick fan, but in this case I think he showed giant, clanking, Al Swearingen-like b***s, and I salute him.
With that bit of business out of the way, I now present Monday, available for your loathing and derision, following the jump.
ABOUT LAST NIGHT …
What you missed while
* Worst attempt at a tackle in NFL history: Jeff Reed’s effort to try and stop the Bengals’ Bernard Scott on a kickoff return is a limited edition boxed set of fail.
* It’s a field goal, its a punt, it’s a pass attempt … what the f*** is it??!
* Hit of the day: Belichick’s security guy takes out a cameraman after the game. Pow!
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TODAY IN MARK TRAIL …
