New England Patriots
“I thought bro was like right behind me and that’s what made me move.”
FOXBOROUGH – DeMario Douglas’s foot was inches away from where it needed to be.
On 4th-and-1 with 1:05 remaining in the game and the Patriots trailing by a touchdown, Douglas caught the ball with a tiny amount of space between him and the yard line he needed to cross.
But instinctively, as he sensed defenders chasing after him, Douglas tried to make a move and wound up going backwards for a one-yard loss. The Patriots turned the ball over on downs and Pittsburgh was able to run out the clock and win the game.
“It was a play. It wasn’t designed for anything,” Douglas said. “I knew I was somewhere by it because we only had two yards.”
Douglas knew he was close to the line and felt that he had to make a play. His decision backfired.
Quarterback Drake Maye did not emphasize the point of getting up field in a such a short-yardage situation the way he would have liked, taking the blame for the way things ended on the Patriots’ final offensive snap.
“I was expecting pressure, expecting to get something out quick,” Maye said. “I wish I would have told those guys, 4th and 1, just try to catch it and get up field. I wish I would have told them that in the huddle. Those little things go a long way. Yeah, nothing Pop did wrong.”
“Just he was trying to make a play,” the quarterback added. “I wish I would have — we were expecting some type of blitz look. I think they played some blitz trap deal. Shoot, that’s just the league. You’ve got the ball, tied up, and it cost us, and then we got the ball with the tie to send it to overtime. That’s the NFL. It’s tough, but it’s a great experience.”
The Patriots were successful on four of their five 4th-down conversion attempts, with the Douglas catch being the only blemish. Douglas could have made a better decision on which move to make, coach Mike Vrabel said.
“Looked like they pressured us and Drake got the ball out, and again, probably have to just drop step and be able to knife,” Vrabel said. “Know those are going to be bang-bang plays and try to split them and get the 1st down.”
“It’s hard to circle around some defenders,” he added. “I didn’t have the best view of it. I would say that the decision that Pop made wasn’t the right one there just because we didn’t get it. Got to try to either drop step or make them miss.”
Douglas offered a similar perspective in the locker room.
“Probably knife, go straight up,” Douglas said, when asked what he would do differently. “I thought bro was like right behind me and that’s what made me move.”
Sometimes, the difference between winning and losing in the NFL can be less than a yard. The Patriots came close to extending their final drive and giving themselves a fresh set of downs in the final minute, but it wasn’t close enough.
“It hurts. Nobody likes losing, especially the way that we lost today,” said Douglas.
Sign up for Patriots updates🏈
Get breaking news and analysis delivered to your inbox during football season.
