PatsFans.com Menu
PatsFans.com - The Hub For New England Patriots Fans

New England Patriots > Patriots Blog

Belichick On Coin-Flip Questions “There Was No Confusion”

Ian Logue
Ian Logue on Twitter
December 28, 2015 at 5:30 am ET

Belichick On Coin-Flip Questions “There Was No Confusion”(PHOTO: Ed Mulholland - USA TODAY Sports)

🕑 Read Time: 2 minutes

Watching what transpired at the start of overtime might have looked a little confusing for those of us who observed the interaction at midfield with Patriots captain Matthew Slater and the officials, but according to head coach Bill Belichick, they had it under control.

After electing to defer to begin overtime, there seemed to be some uncertainty after Slater seemed confused about not being able to choose what direction they were kicking to, which the officials gave that choice to the Jets.

When asked after the game if there was any confusion on the call, Belichick scoffed at the notion after having been questioned about the topic earlier in his press conference.

“There wasn’t any confusion,” said Belichick after previously having been asked earlier about why they opted to kick.  “I just answered that same question.  There was no confusion.”

Slater confirmed that after the game, telling reporters that he repeated what Belichick requested to be absolutely sure before he went out there.

“Before we went out for the toss Coach told us if we won the toss that we wanted to kick off,” explained Slater. “Obviously as a player, you ask three or four times just to double check because you want to make sure you got it right. So we (went) out there (and) we won the toss. We chose to kick off just like Coach instructed us to.”

As for any confusion, Slater said the only thing he questioned the officials about was the fact he thought they also had a choice of which direction they would get to kick the ball, which the officials told him wasn’t the case.

“The only confusion was whether or not we got to choose which direction we get to kick the ball. Because we won the toss and we chose to kick off, then they got to choose which way they wanted to receive the ball. That’s the way it was explained to me. Obviously, we wanted to kick off. That’s what Coach wanted to do so that’s what we did. So when we won the toss we elected to kick off.”

Slater also said that he had no issue with the decision, saying that he has full trust in his coach.

“No,” said Slater when asked if he questioned the decision to kick off.  “I just asked him three or four times just to make sure I’m not the guy that goes up there (and decides), ‘Yeah, we want to kick off’. So I double checked three or four times. I think he was looking at me like, ‘Are you concussed?’ because I kept asking him.  But that’s what he wanted to do.”

“You never question Coach’s decision making. He’s the best in the business and we trust him fully. So that’s what we did.”

 

READ NEXT:
Monday Observations, Patriots Lose to Jets in OT, #1 Seed Still in Sight

About Ian Logue

Ian Logue is a Seacoast native and owner and senior writer for PatsFans.com, an independent media site covering the New England Patriots and has been running this site in one form or another since 1997.


Posted Under: Patriots Commentary

  • Comments are closed.

  • More Patriots News Headlines:

    MORSE: NFL Adopts New Rules for 2024

    MORSE: NFL Adopts New Rules for 2024

    By: Mark Morse
    At the League meetings this week in Orlando, the NFL adopted several new rule changes.  The two most controversial changes were the new kickoff rule…
    11 hours ago
    Thursday Patriots Notebook 3/28: News and Notes

    Thursday Patriots Notebook 3/28: News and Notes

    By: Ian Logue
    As the Patriots continue pondering what to do with the #3 pick, if history is any indication, should they trade out of that spot, they're…
    11 hours ago
    Wednesday Patriots Notebook 3/27: News and Notes

    Wednesday Patriots Notebook 3/27: News and Notes

    By: Ian Logue
    New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft said on Tuesday that 'we're going to be open to whatever can come our way,' heading into next month's…
    1 day ago
    Tuesday Patriots Notebook 3/26: News and Notes

    Tuesday Patriots Notebook 3/26: News and Notes

    By: Ian Logue
    It's been interesting to hear the reactions following Jerod Mayo's press conference on Monday, and at the rate things are going, it's likely that he'll…
    3 days ago
    TRANSCRIPT: Patriots Owner Robert Kraft at the Owner’s Meetings 3/26

    TRANSCRIPT: Patriots Owner Robert Kraft at the Owner’s Meetings 3/26

    By: Ian Logue
    Here's the full transcript of New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft's meeting with the media on Tuesday, March 26, 2024.
    3 days ago

    Share via
    Copy link
    Powered by Social Snap
    Search For Links: - CLOSE
    For searches with multiple players
    add commas (Ex: "Bill Belichick, Devin McCourty")