Bill Belichick on failed fourth down: If we kicked, you'd ask why we didn't go for it
Patriots coach Bill Belichick is not second-guessing himself after eschewing twice failing on fourth down inside field goal range in the fourth quarter of Sunday's game, a game the Patriots ended up losing 25-20.
If the Patriots had kicked two field goals, they could have won 26-25. But the first time, fourth-and-3 at the 17-yard line with 9:32 remaining in the fourth quarter, Belichick decided to go for it and Mac Jones' pass fell incomplete. That left Belichick with no choice but to go for it again on fourth-and-11 at the 20-yard line with 27 seconds left in the game. That conversion attempt failed as well.
Belichick defended going for it on fourth-and-3 as the right call for the team at that point in the game.
"Made the best decision we could at the time. Didn't know we'd be down there multiple times," Belichick said. "If we'd kicked I'm sure you'd be asking why we didn't go for it."
It's a valid point from Belichick, that coaches' decisions are second-guessed when they don't pan out, even if they were the correct decision at the time. And the analytics models would say Belichick clearly did make the correct decision at the time. There are things the Patriots can be second-guessed about regarding Sunday's loss, but that fourth down decision wasn't one of them.
