New England Patriots: All Too Familiar Fourth-And-One Bad Decision…

October 25, 2010   ·   Erik Frenz   ·   Jump to comments

Because the New England Patriots beat the San Diego Chargers, many will say that Bill Belichick and Tom Brady have "undying confidence" to close out the game on a key fourth-down conversion.
If they had lost, though, those words would probably read more like "unequivocal cockiness."
Deja vu was in the air.
The Patriots had the Chargers right where they wanted them, in a 17-point hole in the fourth quarter. Despite the disparity on the scoreboard, the Chargers were still doing things, and never seemed fully out of the game.
With a solid touchdown drive at the midway point of the fourth quarter, the Chargers were within 10. In a shocking turn of events, San Diego's not-so-special teams converted an onside kick, despite chronicled struggles all season.
A three-minute drive ended with another touchdown and the lead was cut to three.
Uh-oh.
The Patriots stewed on the sideline, with yet another chance to put the game away for good. They had 2nd-and-3 on the...

Read Complete Article at Bleacher Report - NFL
Article is property of BleacherReport.com