Nobody, including Patriots coaches, is a fan of how the NFL has handled roughing-the-passer penalties.
The issue reared its ugly head in Week 5. Atlanta Falcons defensive lineman Grady Jarrett was called for a laughable penalty while sacking Tom Brady on Sunday, and Kansas City Chiefs star Chris Jones got flagged for an equally lame penalty while strip-sacking Derek Carr on Monday. Even the Patriots got victimized, with linebacker Mack Wilson earning a soft roughing-the-passer call in New England’s win over the Detroit Lions.
Here’s what Patriots coaches said Tuesday when asked about the subject:
Jerod Mayo (linebackers coach): “I’m gonna pull an Andy Reid and say, ‘You’re trying to get me fined.’ In all honestly, though, it’s been tough to tackle quarterbacks just in general. Not only sacks, but also when a quarterback scrambles. Like, is he still a quarterback or is he a running back now? I don’t know. And you look at some of these quarterbacks, going back to diversity of skillsets, some of these quarterbacks, they can run around you, they can run you over or they can slide. So, it’s always difficult to deal with those types of things. It’s unfortunate some of those calls that have gone on. But hey, that’s the rule of the land.”
Steve Belichick (linebackers coach): “I guess that’s a hot topic today. But it’s kind of the way it always is with all these calls. … It’s not our jobs, we don’t have flags in our pockets. So, you try and coach it the best you can. But some of that stuff’s not always consistent. (The referees) have a tough job to do, also. You try and show examples of that type of stuff throughout the league as best you can, and try and illustrate a picture of where it’s trending. But I can’t speak too much on that, you gotta ask those guys. But I’m a defensive guy, so I think you know where I stand on those.”
DeMarcus Covington (defensive line coach): “We try to make it a point of emphasis, as far as the rules and what to do, really at the beginning of each season so we won’t get those type of penalties — especially on big plays. You know, the rules are what they are: can’t touch a quarterback’s helmet, can’t land the body weight on him, hit below the knees. So, we make that a point of emphasis to our players. … So, for us, we try to just play fast and play within the rules. And, hopefully, our guys (can) be able to go out there and do that.”
Given the ongoing outrage, the NFL surely will address the problem during the offseason. Whether there’s a solution that will work for all parties is anyone’s guess, but anything would be better than what we have now.
By the way: The Patriots have been flagged for roughing the passer 33 times since NFL Penalties began tracking it in 2009.
