Tennessee Titans head coach Mike Vrabel outsmarted his former coach Bill Belichick during Saturday night’s big playoff win.
On Saturday night, football fans around the world could’ve witnessed the end of an era. The six-seeded Tennessee Titans came into Foxboro, MA and upset the three-seeded New England Patriots 20-13. It was the first time the Pats played a Wild Card game since January of 2010 and will be the first time they won’t make it to the Super Bowl since the 2015 season. Not to mention, Tom Brady will be a free agent this offseason.
During the final quarter of what was a huge win for Tennessee, Titans head coach Mike Vrabel actually outsmarted his former coach Bill Belichick.
The Titans were set to punt with about six minutes remaining and took a delay of game penalty. The clock then started running again which prompted them to commit a false start penalty, thus wasting more time. Before they could commit another delay of game, the Pats went offside and wasted even more time, as the cameras portrayed a very displeased Belichick.
Poor Bill Belichick all upset that someone figured out how to use the rules against him. Poor guy. Sad little Bill. Getting school by one of his own. #GoPats #Titans pic.twitter.com/GWokOm8sto
— Todd Littles (@Hot_Toddy_GGSN) January 5, 2020
Tennessee ended up punting the ball away with under five minutes remaining.
It’s definitely a Belichick-type move, so it’s very interesting to see one of his former players using it against him.
With the win, the Titans will travel Baltimore next week to take on the top-seeded Ravens in the AFC Divisional round. The win was Vrabel’s first-ever postseason victory as a head coach.
Titans quarterback Ryan Tannehill didn’t produce the most efficient numbers, only throwing for 72 yards with one touchdown and one pick. Nonetheless, Tennessee received a massive game from its massive ball carrier. Derrick Henry rushed for 182 yards and one score on 34 carries (5.4 yards-per-carry).
