New England Patriots coach Bill Belichick blamed coaching mistakes for his team’s upset Super Bowl loss to the Philadelphia Eagles on Sunday.
The most successful coach in Super Bowl history was left shellshocked after the Eagles conjured up one of the great performances to win 41-33.
Belichick, who had been aiming to win his sixth Lombardi Trophy with the Patriots, pinpointed a lacklustre first half when New England had been unable to put more points on the board.
“Obviously we didn’t do a good enough job coaching, missed a lot of opportunities offensively in the first half, didn’t play good enough defence, didn’t play good enough in the kicking game,” Belichick said.
“In the end, we just couldn’t quite make enough plays, and that was all on me. Disappointing, but I’m proud of the way our team competed.”
It was the third time Belichick has tasted defeat in a Super Bowl.
The franchise faces an uncertain future with key members of the coaching staff, Josh McDaniels and Matt Patricia, expected to leave for head coaching jobs in the summer.
Belichick, however, insisted that despite the defeat his team could be proud of their season.
“These guys are champions, champions of the AFC. They earned that. We just came up a little bit short,” he said.
“Tough, tough, way to end. There’s a lot of really good things that happened this season, but that’s what this game’s about.”
