It's a concern coach Bill Belichick has minimal patience for, especially when a reporter asked why the 40-year-old quarterback continued to take snaps with New England up 35-17 over Miami on Sunday with mere minutes to play.
"It's easy for you to sit there and say the game is out of hand," Belichick said, per ESPN. "But if you watch games in the National Football League, a lot can change in a hurry. The only time I think the game is in hand [is] when they're not going to have enough possessions to get the points they need. Sorry, we just see that one totally differently."
Brady absorbed a whopping eight hits by Dolphins defenders in the win. He returned to the field with under five minutes to play, though, to hand the ball off three times as the Patriots "clung" to an 18-point advantage. Following a punt, the Dolphins proceeded to throw a pick before Brady unfurled a trio of kneel-downs to kill the clock.
When Belichick was asked about Brady's late-game playing time, he initially shot back: "What? On the kneel-downs? What difference does it make?"
In the end, it makes none. Belichick -- coaching since the mid 1970s -- isn't about to take cues on gridiron strategy from those who write about the game and come armed with their burning queries once the final whistle blows.
At best, he'll tolerate those questions. At worst, he'll dismiss them like leaves in the Foxborough wind.
