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Bill Belichick has good and bad history with the New York Giants. He was the defensive coordinator under Bill Parcells for Super-Bowl-winning clubs with the Giants, but he’s also had his biggest Super Bowl failures against the G-Men.
On Friday, after the New England Patriots dropped their preseason opener to the Giants 24-21, Belichick seemed slightly irritated with New York’s defensive coordinator Don “Wink” Martindale. It seems Belichick thought Martindale unleashed an unnecessary amount of blitz calls against the Patriots.
NESN’s Zack Cox captured the concept, calling the Giants “blitz-happy,” and even added some Pro Football Focus preseason blitz numbers for context.
Why Would Bill Belichick Be Upset With Tons of Blitzing?
No rule dictates how much blitzing an NFL team can do in an exhibition game. However, teams usually understand that excessive blitzing can put quarterbacks in unnecessary danger in a mostly meaningless preseason encounter.
Tons of blitzing can also contaminate the samples coaches take of their offensive line, wide receivers, tight ends, and running backs during this evaluation period. Apparently, the Giants and Martindale didn’t get that memo.
Brian Daboll, the Giants’ new head coach, is a Belichick disciple and the two are still seemingly on good terms. It is unlikely this issue will have any far-reaching impact, but the Hoodie didn’t appear happy with the G-Men’s approach on defense.
Patriots Notes and Quotes
- Mac Jones’ Daily Motivation Photo
Patriots fans undoubtedly remember their team being destroyed 47-17 by the rival Buffalo Bills in the postseason in January. Rest assured, quarterback Mac Jones remembers it as well.
Jones has a photo from the game plastered in his locker stall to serve as a daily reminder of the pain he felt during that one-sided loss. Jones was just a rookie last season, and the expectation is for him and the Patriots offense to show growth, but it is clear the memories from that game still sting.
Pats Pulpit’s Brian Hines tweeted an image of the photo from Jones’ locker:
- Belichick Compliments Tre Nixon
The Patriots’ wide receiver picture is interesting. There are a few locks for the 53-man roster in DeVante Parker, Jakobi Meyers, Kendrick Bourne, and rookie Tyquan Thornton. Beyond those four, no one knows for sure which wideouts will be with the team in Week 1 of the 2022 season. Kristian Wilkerson and Lil’Jordan Humphrey made a case for themselves against the Giants.
Last season’s seventh-round pick Tre Nixon is in the mix. Nixon got a strong vote of confidence from Belichick after the preseason owner. Belichick called Nixon “a hard-working, tough kid.”
Belichick even talked about potentially giving the speedy wide receiver an opportunity in the return game. That job would seemingly be destined for rookie cornerback Marcus Jones, but Belichick gave another corner, Myles Bryant, an opportunity in that role against the Giants.
Bryant responded with two impressive punt returns despite not having played that role since high school. Much like Nixon, Bryant has to be willing to plug in wherever he can to make his mark and keep a spot on this roster.
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