Twilight Zone
Bill Belichick apologizing to the media is one of the most jarring videos you'll ever see
After a seven-game winning streak, the New England Patriots finally came back down to earth on Saturday night, digging themselves a 20-0 hole they could never crawl out of and losing to the Indianapolis Colts, 27-17. It was a decidedly un-Patriots-like performance, with Bill Belichick's squad fumbling the ball multiple times, allowing Jonathan Taylor to run all over them and giving up a blocked punt touchdown in the first half.
It was all the stuff you almost never see from a Belichick-coached team, which reflects poorly on Belichick, at least in his own mind. Understandably, he was even shorter than normal with the media Saturday evening, calling out himself and his staff:
Belichick was also asked "what he saw" on the blocked punt, and "what he saw" on Jonathan Taylor's 67-yard touchdown run to seal the game, which, in fairness to him, are two awful questions to ask a guy who is known for answering those types of questions very matter-of-factly, especially after a brutal loss:
Pretty much par for the Belichick course. Ask bad questions, get extremely worse answers. Though, in this case, even a question about Lawrence Taylor or Mark Bavaro or the intricacies of long-snapping wouldn't have gotten much of an answer from Darth Bill after this game.
Normally, on the Monday after, Belichick would have kept it moving. "We're on to Buffalo" or "questions about Buffalo only, please," would have been the mantra. But in a legitimately stunning turn of events, Belichick opened his Monday presser with an apology to the media for how he treated them Saturday night. I literally cannot believe that's a sentence I just typed, and that there is tangible, video proof to back it up:
What planet are we on? Not to be hyperbolic, but this is one of the most jarring videos I've ever seen. Never thought any of us would live to see the day where Bill Belichick would feel remorseful for how he treated the media. Hey, even the Grinch eventually learned the true meaning of Christmas, am I right? This must be 'Ol Billy Scrooge's way of getting in the holiday spirit. Good on him, but it's safe to say we shouldn't expect more of this starting on December 26.