FOXBORO — Patriots head coach Jerod Mayo defended his decision not to challenge a catch made by Colts tight end Will Mallory in Sunday’s 25-24 loss by saying he never got a good look at the play via replay.
The nose of the ball appeared to hit the turf on a 7-yard completion on third-and-10 from the Colts’ 33-yard line with 4:02 left in the fourth quarter.
“We were waiting to see the replay,” Mayo said. “Never really got a clear shot of it, so I didn’t challenge it.”
The CBS broadcast did show a replay, which director of game management Evan Rothstein should have seen in the coaches booth, before the Colts got back to the line of scrimmage. Plays are automatically reviewed in the final two minutes of a game, so it could be argued that the Patriots should have challenged the catch regardless, since it’s doubtful that another play would have been close in the next two minutes of play.
The Patriots also elected to call just one timeout during the Colts’ epic 19-play, 80-yard drive. Doing so could have given them more time after the Colts took the lead on a game-winning touchdown and two-point conversion.
“Absolutely, there was a thought. We have also won a Super Bowl here doing it the other way,” Mayo said referencing Super Bowl XLIX. “Keeping our time-outs is what I thought was best for the team.”
The Patriots got the ball back with 12 seconds left. They were able to run three plays, with two completions, before Mayo elected to attempt a 68-yard field goal over tossing a Hail Mary.
“That was 100% me. Look, [Joey] Slye was hitting it well in pregame, and I felt that that was the best thing to do to help our team win the football game,” Mayo said. “Not sure what the numbers are on Hail Marys versus the field goal there, but that’s what I felt was right.”
A 68-yard field goal would have been an NFL record. Slye came just a yard or two short of hitting the field goal, but teams have converted on end-of-game Hail Marys this season.
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