On Tom Brady's four-yard touchdown run against the Chiefs Sunday night, linebacker Breeland Speaks had him in the backfield but didn't follow through on the tackle because he thought Brady had already thrown the ball.
Afterwards, Speaks said the new NFL points of emphasis were the reason why, as he didn't want to get a penalty.
Tuesday, NFL VP of football operations Troy Vincent disagreed.
"I looked at the video and Tom Brady moved up and the player missed a tackle," Vincent told ESPN's Sal Paolantonio. "He missed an opportunity to make a sack. We have seen Tom step up thousands and thousands of times. In that particular situation, he stepped up, then he wound up running in the end zone. But that is one thing we always want to remove from a player's mind is doubt and we think that we continue to educate, showing players what their peers are doing to make plays, but in that situation its something we have seen Tom do year in and year out, step up in the pocket, avoid a sack and wind up running into the end zone."
The Patriots won the game 43-40.
