Patriots: We’re not getting help, we’re just better than everyone
BLOOMINGTON, Minn. — After the AFC Championship game, one line jumped off the stat sheet.
PENALTIES: Jaguars 6-98 yards, Patriots 1-10 yards.
It was the latest evidence this season the Patriots always seem to be the beneficiaries of the way the game is called. Whether it is flags on the opponent, a lack of flags on them or overturned crucial calls by the New York replay official, the Patriots seem to get all the breaks.
That has led to cries this year that the officials are biased toward the Patriots and conspiracy theories about the league wanting Bill Belichick and Tom Brady to keep winning. Others argue the Patriots are simply better coached than their opponents and Belichick is a rules guru who makes sure his team is always educated on what they can and cannot get away with.
If the Patriots get a big flag or overturned call that goes their way in Super Bowl LII on Sunday against the Eagles, the howling from Philadelphia will be loud.
A look at the number shows the Patriots are one of the least penalized teams, but not the least. They had 100 penalties this season, 6.39 penalties per game, which is the second fewest in the NFL behind the Panthers, who were flagged 6.18 times. The Patriots had double-digit penalties in just one game this year and were penalized once in two games and had just two penalties three times.
No team converted more first downs by penalty (50) than the Patriots. They also had more automatic first downs (43) than any other team. Pass interference is a specialty of theirs. The Patriots gained 355 yards on defensive pass interference calls against their opponents, the most in the NFL.
On the other side of the ball, the Patriots allowed just 23 first downs by penalty, the lowest total in the league.
Beyond the statistical evidence of the Patriots’ penalty prowess is the anecdotal.
Several crucial replay calls went their way this season in games the Patriots won:
An overturned touchdown by Jets tight end Austin Seferian-Jenkins.
An overturned touchdown by Bills wide receiver Kelvin Benjamin.
An overturned touchdown from Steelers tight end Jesse James.
In the AFC title game two weeks ago, Jacksonville led 14-3 before three killer penalties against the Jaguars before halftime led to a swing in momentum for New England. On the other side, the Patriots had one penalty, the lowest penalty total in a playoff game since the 2011 AFC Championship, when (wait for it) New England had one in a win over the Ravens.
Against Jacksonville, there was also a whistle after a fumble recovery by Jaguars linebacker Myles jack that prevented a return by him. Video, captured at the end of the game, of an official congratulating Brady only fed the conspiracy theory.
So is it a conspiracy or another example of Belichick’s coaching acumen?
If you asked the Jaguars’ players after the game, they would cry conspiracy, but it’s hard to find anyone else — beyond fans of opposing teams — who believes that.
“There’s no bias,” said Mike Pereira, the former vice president of officiating for the NFL who now works for FOX. “If there was a bias, what about Spygate? What about Deflategate? If the league has a bias in favor of the Patriots, that’s nuts. I think people need to step back and say maybe the Patriots are just better coached, maybe they spend more time in penalty prevention and maybe Bill Belichick knows the rulebook better than any other coach in the league. We all know that he figures out ways to take advantage of a rule, not break it, but take advantage of the rule.”
Ask those inside the Patriots and they will tell you how much time they spend studying the rules and teaching them to the players. Longtime Patriots offensive line coach Dante Scarnecchia said players know penalties won’t be tolerated.
“I don’t know if we’re like anybody else,” Scarnecchia said. “I do know what our culture is there. If you jump offsides in practice, you go take a lap and that practice isn’t waiting for you. As you’re running around the field, you’re losing your reps. That can be anybody. It can be the quarterback. It can be the wide receiver. It can be a lineman. That’s not tolerated.
“You’ll never hear one of our players say, and I say this from a prideful stance, our players will never say, ‘That’s all right’ to a guy who commits a penalty. Collectively, we can’t have it. We don’t say it’s all right. There’s a price to be paid if you’re a guy who has a lot of penalties.”
Former Patriots safety Rodney Harrison believes the conspiracy theories are just another example of Patriots Envy.
“It’s dumb,” Harrison said. “Everyone hates us. Everywhere I go people hate us. When you’re a Patriot, you’re just an enemy of everyone else. Everyone is trying to be like the Patriots.”