Getty Patriots QB Mac Jones is being called out for a "dirty" play against the Bears.
It was arguably the most memorable play of the Chicago Bears‘ 33-14 Week 7 win over the New England Patriots.
With just under 14 minutes to go in the second quarter, Patriots quarterback Mac Jones took off running with the ball on 3rd down, and when he slid after acquiring the first, his right foot went directly up into the groin area of Bears rookie safety Jaquan Brisker.
Brisker was visibly shaken for a moment, and had to leave the game for a play, although he returned after that. Multiple fans and analysts accused Jones of intentionally kicking the Bears safety, including Hall of Fame quarterback Peyton Manning.
“Watch this right here: a little kick,” Manning said on the October 24 ManningCast. “You can’t hit the quarterback, but yet, he can kick you right in the jewels. That’s why D-linemen don’t like quarterbacks.”
“That’s why D-linemen don’t like quarterbacks.”
Peyton breaks down Mac Jones’ QB slide 😭
Twitter also had plenty to say about Jones’ slide, with one insider wondering if the Patriots quarterback could be facing a fine for the play.
Mac Jones Called Out for ‘Dirty’ Slide on Jaquan Brisker
Ex-Baltimore Ravens defensive and Marcus Spears weighed in on Jones’ slide via Twitter, as did many fans and analysts, and Spears’ sentiments seemed to sum up how Bears Twitter felt about the play:
Former NFL cornerback Darius Butler also called Jones a “dirty mf:”
Got em back. Mac a dirty mf for this too.
Bears defensive lineman Justin Jones also shared his thoughts post-game:
NFL insider Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk noted that Jones’ slide “looked a lot like the move former Patriots quarterback Tom Brady once made when sliding during a playoff game against the Ravens. Hall of Fame safety Ed Reed was on the wrong end of it. Brady later was fined $10,000. … As the week unfolds, it will be interesting to see whether Jones gets fined,” Florio added.
Jones wasn’t flagged for the play during the game, so we’ll see if he faces any kind of punishment.
Mac Jones never played with Tom Brady, but Mac has learned one of his moves — slide capped by a foot to the crotch of a defender.
Jaquan Brisker Got Revenge Against Jones
A few plays after taking the shot to his groin, Brisker got a bit of revenge against Jones, intercepting the Patriots quarterback on an excellent leaping one-handed grab:
“It felt like a rebound, like when I’m playing basketball or something,” Brisker said about his first career interception. “I saw two receivers going vertical so I just tried to split the difference. When he actually threw the ball, I was kind of surprised and I just capitalized on it.”
The rookie safety has played well over seven weeks, and he looked great against the Pats. He was targeted five times in coverage, allowing just two catches for 11 yards and one first down, per PFF. In addition to the eye-catching interception, Brisker also added seven total tackles and a pass breakup in the victory.
Chicago Bears rookie S Jaquan Brisker now the third-highest graded rookie safety with a 71.5 overall mark, but has played 250 more snaps than the the top 2 guys
Bears rookie LT Braxton Jones also has a 71.5 season grade, which is second among rookie tackles (first among LTs)
“It felt good,” Brisker said about the win. ‘We played a whole complete game from the first quarter to the fourth quarter. If we keep going like this, everybody keeps doing their job, we are just getting warmed up, building our chemistry up, and we’re just going to keep going.”