Bill Belichick threw the kitchen sink at Tom Brady on Sunday night in Foxboro, and somehow, it still wasn't enough for the New England Patriots to squeak past the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
In a primetime mental chess match, the GOAT quarterback got the best of the GOAT head coach, as Nick Folk's missed go-ahead field goal attempt with one minute left in the fourth quarter clinched a thrilling 19-17 win for Tampa Bay. Suffice to say, Brady now has meaningful bragging rights over Belichick.
"The New England Patriots weren't just the Tom Brady show," JR said during Monday's edition of the JR SportBrief show. "Somebody had to draft Brady, work the environment around Brady, work with him in the constructs of an entire team. We've heard a lot of negatives about Bill Belichick, and it's fun to pile on. Call him a jerk, a curmudgeon. But you can't argue with the results.
"He may not have the best of all-time anymore. He may not win another championship. But if you look at the past 20 years, you tell me: besides a couple of Eli Manning throws and the Eagles, what could've been better? Find me a situation, an organization that could've been better. You can't."
Belichick's defensive scheme -- combined with rainy weather and emotions from the reunion -- disrupted Brady's typical flow. The 44-year-old completed just 22 of 43 passes for 269 yards with no touchdowns, and Tampa's offense failed to score at least 20 points with Brady for just the third time.
Primetime pressure didn't faze Belichick's new rookie quarterback, however. Mac Jones completed 31 of 40 passes for a career-high 275 yards with two touchdowns and one interception. He also completed 19 consecutive passes on Sunday night -- the longest streak by a rookie over the last 40 seasons.
New England (1-3) will visit the Houston Texans (1-3) in a Week 5 matchup on Sunday, Oct. 10. According to FiveThirtyEight's projections, the Patriots have just a 24-percent chance to reach the playoffs and a 9-percent chance to win the AFC East.
JR's complete thoughts on Belichick and the Patriots can be accessed in the audio player above.
You can follow the JR SportBrief show on Twitter @JRSportBrief and Tom Hanslin @TomHanslin.