Some Patriots fans think team lost on purpose
After Patriots lost to Jets in mind-boggling fashion, some N.E. fans started positing that the team lost intentionally.
Would an NFL team really throw a game on purpose, this close to the playoffs?
Common sense would say no, but of all the coaches in the league, Bill Belichick seems to defy reason and common sense the most frequently.
Sometimes it works: while everyone around the country wondered why the Pats weren’t calling a timeout at the end of Super Bowl XLIX, The Hoodie allowed the clock to wind down and the Seahawks to get off a running play, forcing Pete Carroll into a controversial passing play call. We all know what happened next.
Sometimes it doesn’t work: late in a 2009 game against the undefeated Colts, and with a six point lead, Belichick elected to go for it on 4th and 2 rather than punt it back to Peyton Manning. The Patriots couldn’t pick up the first down and ended up losing the game, and that crucial decision was heavily criticized and ridiculed.
When Pats captain Matthew Slater won the overtime coin toss and chose to kick off, the Jets promptly marched down the field and scored the winning touchdown, leading many to scrutinize why Slater (and Belichick) made such an illogical choice. Nine times out of ten, teams that win the coin toss in overtime elect to receive the ball, since a touchdown equates to sudden death.
While most fans and analysts have come to accept the bizarre call as a mental gaffe on the part of either Slater or Belichick, some have instead starting fanning the flames of conspiracy theories, going so far as to suggest Belichick lost intentionally to damage the Steelers’ playoff hopes.
Patriots lose to Jets on purpose, and former Tom Brady backup leads Ravens to win over Steelers. Wild Bill owns the league. #InBillWeTrust
— Liam McNeil (@RealDealMcNeil_) December 27, 2015
10000% patriots lost that on purpose. Happened minutes after the offense was rolling...minutes after Pitt lost.
— Side Money Sports Betting (@SideMoneySB) December 27, 2015
Ok.... Is it THAT far fetched that Bill knew the Steelers lost and did this on purpose??? #Patriots
— Pats2022 (@simpsonn2) December 27, 2015
The Jets’ win, combined with the Steelers’ loss, does catapult New York ahead of Pittsburgh for the sixth and final wild card spot in the AFC. Common sense says the Patriots, with a chance to lock up home field advantage in the playoffs, wouldn’t throw a game just to potentially knock out Ben Roethlisberger and his dangerous offense.
But then again, if anyone would do it, it would be Belichick.
What do you think? Did the Pats lose on purpose, or is this all just sour grapes and conspiracy theories?
Let us know in the comments section below.