How Bill Belichick Explained Demario Douglas’ Patriots Benching

FOXBORO, Mass. -- Patriots rookie Demario Douglas learned a harsh lesson Sunday night:

Bill Belichick does not tolerate shoddy ball security, especially from young players.

Douglas, who was one of the stars of Patriots training camp this summer, was exiled to the bench after he lost a fumble on the final play of the first quarter in a 24-17 loss to the Miami Dolphins at Gillette Stadium.

The sixth-round draft pick's only playing time after that miscue was on punt returns, where he filled in for an injured Marcus Jones. Douglas did not play another snap on offense -- an obvious punishment for violating one of the Patriots' core tenets.

Belichick, though, refused to say Douglas' de facto benching was related to his fumble.

"We played all of our skill players," the head coach said in his postgame news conference.

When a reporter pointed out that Douglas played zero offensive snaps after his error, Belichick replied that the Patriots "had a lot of production on offense," noting contributions by receivers DeVante Parker, JuJu Smith-Schuster and Kendrick Bourne and tight ends Hunter Henry and Mike Gesicki.

"(We have) a lot of good players," he said. "Can't play everybody."

The following exchange ensued later in Belichick's presser:

Q: Bill, was the plan to not use Demario Douglas after the first half on offense?

Belichick: "He returned punts."

Q: Well, on offense –

Belichick: "We played all of our -- yeah, look, we could talk about this every week. And there will be somebody that played less than somebody else. We've got a lot of skill players."

Q: That seemed real – he didn't get on offense after the fumble, though.

Belichick: "Yeah, OK."

Douglas caught two passes on two targets for 19 yards in his limited playing time. The fumble occurred after he converted a third down and then cut upfield for extra yardage, showcasing the quickness that made him a summer sensation.

But his awareness was lacking. Edge rusher Bradley Chubb chased Douglas down from behind and punched the ball out, and Miami recovered.

"When I turned to go to the right, I saw the end zone and kind of got excited," Douglas explained after the game. "I forgot about people that were coming from behind. He pulled my arm, and I let the ball go."

🥊🥊🥊 @astronaut with the PUNCH and DeShon Elliott jumps on it! 💥 pic.twitter.com/mXArjWh5Z7

— Miami Dolphins (@MiamiDolphins) September 18, 2023

Douglas said he knew his removal from the offense was because of his lapse in ball security.

"It's the No. 1 thing," he said. "And I already know. That's why I had the mindset of, I've just got to come back next week harder, for sure."

The undersized Liberty product was able to put a positive spin on his mistake.

"I feel like this definitely helped me just know the speed of the game," Douglas said. "Everybody's coming to that ball. So for me, I just need to make sure my awareness is higher."

We'll see if Belichick gives Douglas a chance to redeem himself when the Patriots visit the New York Jets next Sunday.