Belichick: “We’ll Just Keep Trying to String These Weeks Together” and More Following Patriots Victory Over Panthers
The New England Patriots are above .500 for the first time in the 2021 regular season. New England collectively rushed for 151 yards while cornerback J.C. Jackson intercepted Carolina quarterback Sam Darnold twice, including an 88-yard pick-six as the Patriots defeated the Panthers 24-6 at Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte, North Carolina.
Patriots head coach Bill Belichick met with the media, both postgame on Sunday, and again on Monday morning. Here are some of the highlights from Belichick’s meets with the media:
Postgame: Sunday, November 7
Opening Statement
“I thought it was a good effort by our team tonight – players and coaches. Thought we did a really good job of rallying after the trip back from California. With the preparations and the way we played out, I just thought they did a good job, came out and played with good energy this afternoon. Kind of hurt ourselves offensively with some penalties and turnovers. We moved the ball. We left some things out on the field. Defensively, we got a real strong effort in the running game, forced them into some passing situations and we were able to convert on a few of those. Tough for Carolina losing two starting linemen in the first quarter. That’s never a good thing. But I thought our guys played hard. Obviously, the pressure on the quarterback, J.C. [Jackson’s] interceptions, the play Jamie [Collins Sr.] made – I don’t know how many players in the league could make that play, not very many, but it was a tremendous play. I thought, overall, we covered well in the kicking game. We’re solid there. Good to come down here and get a win. Good to beat an NFC team and we’ll just keep trying to string these weeks together.”
On how the defense played on Sunday:
“It was great. I thought the d-line did a good job, linebackers had good pressure on the quarterback. They had a couple runs on us there, they had a couple of wildcat runs, and a bounce out there. They’re a good tough, hard-nose football team and they showed that defensively. Those two guys on the edge are really fast, really explosive. They’re a problem. [Brian] Burns and [Haason] Reddick and [Derrick] Brown inside, those three guys are hard to handle but we kind of stood in there and battled them. But defensively, it was a good effort. We were able to put the quarterback under some pressure. Two of the turnovers we batted a couple of balls but both of J.C. [Jackson’s] interceptions both looked like they came with some pressure on them, just a couple of balls [Sam Darnold] had to throw away. He’s a tough guy to get down, we missed him a couple of times in the pocket, but that’s the way it’s going to be with Sam [Darnold] – he’s a big, strong kid that you’ve got to wrap up back there. But I thought our defense came to play today and played well, helped our offense out and saved some points on the two turnovers – held them to three points on both of those. Those were both good kicks by [Zane] Gonzalez. We pushed them back a little bit but not quite far enough.”
On how important Brandon Bolden has become:
“He has a big role – pass protection, route running, some of the carries that he’s taken – he’s done a good job and he’s still continued to keep his role in the kicking game which has been good as well. We’ve had good depth in the backfield. Some years we’ve had to use it, some years we haven’t, but when we’ve had it, generally those guys have stepped up and done a good job for us – going all the way back to [Cordarrelle Patterson] in 2018, we needed him during a point in the season. But yeah, Brandon has stepped up every week, and Rhamondre, and obviously Damien, and J.J. [Taylor] last week, so hopefully those guys will continue to come through for us.”
On what stood out about Jamie Collins Jr.’s interception:
“It was just the catch. It was like five yards away from the quarterback who threw it as hard as he could. That’s a pretty tough catch.”
On J.C. Jackson’s performance after being sick this week:
“Yeah, I talked to him about that. I hope that’s not a sign of things to come – to think that we don’t have to practice and then go out there and be a star of the game. But J.C. played well and honestly when you miss a couple of days like that, if you’ve had all the other ones that lead up to it then those aren’t as – they’re important but you have a better chance of overcoming it because of all the practices that you’ve bankrolled. But it was a great job by him. He came out there on Friday and he was on things and actually had a good day on Friday. He practiced well and then obviously had a couple big plays today, a couple of which – especially the first one – came with some pressure but he made a great play on a great run. When I saw Robby Anderson chasing him, I wasn’t sure how that was going to come out because I know Robby can go, but J.C. beat him to the goal line so that shows you what he can do too.”
On how much Christian Barmore has grown this season:
“Oh, a lot from where he was in the spring. He’s worked extremely hard. I’ve got to give that kid a lot of credit: he comes in early, he stays late; he works on his flexibility, his strength, his technique. He’s really applied himself and he’s just gotten better and better every week in the running game, in the passing game, more discipline, use of hands, recognition of plays. He’s done a good job for us and he’s a big man.”
On what he did on defense to fluster Sam Darnold:
“Credit goes to the players. They’re the ones that are out there making the plays. I didn’t do anything – I didn’t touch any passes or cover anybody. We don’t want that.”
On whether he’s concerned about the number of pre-snap penalties:
“Yeah, that’s not what we’re trying to do.”
On whether the running backs settled down the game after an unsettled beginning
“There are 11 guys out there, so when we were able to work well together, we had more production. We put ourselves in some long-yardage situations with the penalties which are definitely a problem. First-and-15, first-and-20, second-and-25. Those are tough situations. Those pre-snap penalties are definitely our fault. There’s no other way around it, we’ve got to coach better and we’ve got to be able to run plays without that stuff happening.”
Monday, November 8
On the performance of the defense, as a whole, in Sunday’s win:
“The defense played well and the players deserve a lot of credit. They read their keys well, and took advantage of the matchups. The two big stops after the turnovers..I thought those were really important series for us…especially the turnover from J.C. [Jackson] were point-saving plays. Jamie’s [Collins] play was just a tremendous play. I dont know of many athletes can make that catch. But, consistency was a big key for us yesterday. They played well on all three downs. The players did a great job.”
On whether the Patriots have been playing more zone coverage [as opposed to man coverage] as of late:
“Well, we play both…those decisions are game-plan- based. As the game dictates, we will go in one direction or another based on what their offense is doing. Steve [Belichick] does a good job of mixing things up on the call, whether it be zone or pressure. I think our players are comfortable in playing all three types of calls and they work hard in all three phases…in all downs and distances. Depending on what the matchups are, we’ll adjust to whether the opponent runs.”
On the contributions of linebacker Jamie Collins
“The interception was a remarkable play, but the forced fumble he had on [Christian] McCaffrey was another amazing play. He does so many things well on defense. He helps us in the kicking game. He contributes in a lot of different ways…plays on the ball, off the ball…in zone, or in man…he sets a good edge and is solid in the run [defense] game. Jaime does a great job of doing what we ask him to do….and he does it well, both oth on and off the field.”
On his thoughts regarding Mac Jones’ hold of Brian Burns:
“What I said on the radio is what I thought.”
On whether he was surprised by the Panthers’ strong reaction to it:
“I don’t know…just telling you what I saw on the play”
Earlier in the morning, Belichick made his weekly appearance on WEEI’s “The Greg Hill Show” where he was asked about his reaction to Jones’
“I think he thought Burns had the ball,” Belichick said of the incident when asked what he saw. When asked a follow-up question, Belichick simply replied, “I think he thought he had the ball.”
On the Patriots ability to contain the Panthers defense:
“The Panthers are a well-coached, fundamentally sound team. Defensively, they have three dynamic players up front…great linebackers behind them. They are well-prepared and disciplined, they don’t make many mistakes. They compete on every down. I think our o-line had some solid stands on both run and pass protection, and they made some pretty good plays. What hurt us yesterday were the negative plays…the miscommunications, false stats, delay of game penalties…they put us in too many long yardage situations. That has to get better. But, we have seen a lot of tough looks over the past few weeks and I think our guys have done a good job.”
