An unusual exchange between Patriots captain Matthew Slater and referee Clete Blakeman during the overtime coin toss left New England kicking off to start the extra period, a decision that helped the rival Jets to a much-needed victory.
Patriots coach Bill Belichick confirmed he instructed Slater to choose a kick if New England won the toss, even though overtime rules allow a team to win outright if it scores a touchdown on its opening possession.
The Jets did just that, winning on Ryan Fitzpatrick's 6-yard touchdown pass to receiver Decker to end the game after the opening possession of overtime.
Slater told reporters that the confusion revolved around whether the Patriots could choose the direction of their kick. He said he confirmed multiple times with Patriots coaches that they wanted to kick off if they won the toss.
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</figure></aside>As the road team, the Patriots had the option at the start of overtime to call heads or tails, and Slater told Blakeman that he called "heads."
Based on a review of the CBS broadcast recording, Blakeman acknowledged "Heads is the call, it is heads." As the camera focused on the the coin, Blakeman asked the Patriots, "You want to kick?"
Slater replied that the Patriots wanted "to kick, that way," before asking, "Hey, we won [the coin toss]. Don't we get to choose?"
Blakeman, with his microphone off, replied, "You elected to kick."
The Jets (10-5) moved into sole possession of the AFC's second wild card with the victory, moving one game ahead of the Pittsburgh Steelers (9-6). New York can clinch a postseason spot with a victory next week against the Buffalo Bills.
Per NFL rules, a team cannot change its mind after declaring a decision after the coin toss. In Week 9, the Minnesota Vikings elected to kick off in overtime to ensure because of wind at TCF Bank Stadium. The Vikings ultimately defeated the St. Louis Rams 21-18.
http://espn.go.com/newyork/nfl/story/_/id/14446123/bill-belichick-new-england-patriots-says-matthew-slater-followed-instructions-defer-ot-possession
Patriots coach Bill Belichick confirmed he instructed Slater to choose a kick if New England won the toss, even though overtime rules allow a team to win outright if it scores a touchdown on its opening possession.
The Jets did just that, winning on Ryan Fitzpatrick's 6-yard touchdown pass to receiver Decker to end the game after the opening possession of overtime.
Slater told reporters that the confusion revolved around whether the Patriots could choose the direction of their kick. He said he confirmed multiple times with Patriots coaches that they wanted to kick off if they won the toss.
<aside class="inline inline-photo full" style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: BentonSans, -apple-system, Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; border-width: 0px 0px 1px; border-bottom-style: solid; border-bottom-color: rgb(221, 221, 221); clear: both; margin: 6px 0px 18px; padding: 0px 0px 15px; width: 565px; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-size: 16px;"><figure style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 0; margin: 0px; position: relative;">
</figure></aside>As the road team, the Patriots had the option at the start of overtime to call heads or tails, and Slater told Blakeman that he called "heads."
Based on a review of the CBS broadcast recording, Blakeman acknowledged "Heads is the call, it is heads." As the camera focused on the the coin, Blakeman asked the Patriots, "You want to kick?"
Slater replied that the Patriots wanted "to kick, that way," before asking, "Hey, we won [the coin toss]. Don't we get to choose?"
Blakeman, with his microphone off, replied, "You elected to kick."
The Jets (10-5) moved into sole possession of the AFC's second wild card with the victory, moving one game ahead of the Pittsburgh Steelers (9-6). New York can clinch a postseason spot with a victory next week against the Buffalo Bills.
Per NFL rules, a team cannot change its mind after declaring a decision after the coin toss. In Week 9, the Minnesota Vikings elected to kick off in overtime to ensure because of wind at TCF Bank Stadium. The Vikings ultimately defeated the St. Louis Rams 21-18.
http://espn.go.com/newyork/nfl/story/_/id/14446123/bill-belichick-new-england-patriots-says-matthew-slater-followed-instructions-defer-ot-possession
Pats fans will say Goodell intentionally did this.
Weren't Slater's exact words " We'll kick that way"...If I read the text correctly, not sure why the ref says "you want to kick" before Slater said that. I would think he would just say "it's heads, New England wins the coin toss, what would you like to do"
Weren't Slater's exact words " We'll kick that way"...If I read the text correctly, not sure why the ref says "you want to kick" before Slater said that. I would think he would just say "it's heads, New England wins the coin toss, what would you like to do"
Why would the Pats even care. They have a bye to the Super Bowl. Losing to the Jets will be better for their psyche as they are the only AFC playoff team capable of beating them. Let's just hope they lose in the Super Bowl or you'll never hear the end of "5 rings" "one for the thumb biatches" " you hate us cause you aint us"
Just check the width of the goalposts for playoff games.
Just check the width of the goalposts for playoff games.
