Bill Belichick Shares Thoughts on Mac Jones Play Panthers Called 'Dirty'

Jones was accused of a dirty play after fumbling on a sack.

Patriots rookie quarterback Mac Jones was accused of a dirty play Sunday, after being strip-sacked by Panthers defensive end Brian Burns. Bill Belichick rejected that idea during a Monday radio appearance.

As Burns hit Jones from the blind side, the ball popped out behind him. Burns popped up to join the scrum for the ball, which was recovered by Carolina linebacker Frankie Luvu, Jones grabbed his ankle and twisted it, taking Burns back down. 

The video of the play certainly doesn't look good for Jones.

Burns would go to the medical tent after the play but eventually returned to the game. After the 24–6 New England win, Jones was called out by Luvu for the play.

"I thought it was completely dirty," Panthers defender Haason Reddick said after the game. "Hopefully it's something the league addresses. I think it was surprising to not see that a penalty was called. It seems like they always protecting the offensive players. Where is the protection for the defensive players as well?"

There is some high school history between Jones, who played at The Bolles School in Jacksonville and Burns, who starred at American Heritage in Plantation, Fla. 

After the play, the CBS broadcast team noted Jones felt that Burns showed him up by dancing and celebrating after the sack.

Belichick thinks the explanation is more clear. While on WEEI's The Greg Hill Show, he said he believes the young quarterback thought Burns had recovered the fumble and was trying to bring him down.

"I think he thought Burns had the ball," Bill Belichick says to @TheGregHillShow, when asked what he saw from the Mac Jones play in which he held on to Brian Burns leg after the strip sack.

— Mike Reiss (@MikeReiss) November 8, 2021

Jones was not asked about the play after the Patriots' win.

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