Bill Belichick snaps at reporter asking about Hunter Henry's chalked-off TD catch
New England Patriots head coach Bill Belichick is the greatest coach in NFL history. He is also notorious for his stoic, often dismissive, attitude towards journalists in press conferences. The veteran coach's disinterested demeanor and reluctance to divulge any information, even on the most arbitrary topics, is the stuff of legend.
So when a journalist dared to ask Belichick about the controversial ruling that led to Hunter Henry's second touchdown catch of the game being chalked off as an incompletion, they faced the head coach's wrath.
When asked about the play, Belichick sniped at the reporter:
“Why don’t you guys go to the officials with your pool reporter and ask them about the play and let them explain it? Isn’t that what you do? Right? Thank you.”
Watch the uncomfortable interaction below:
Bill Belichick was not thrilled when asked about the Hunter Henry catch 😬 https://t.co/EYXxRduEPZ
Why was Hunter Henry's touchdown catch ruled an incompletion? Bill Belichick gets his answer
Pool reporter Mike Reiss asked Walt Anderson, the NFL's senior vice president of officiating, about Hunter Henry's chalked-off touchdown. Here's what he said:
“[Henry] was going to the ground, the ball ended up touching the ground and then he lost control of the ball in his hands.”
He further explained:
“As he’s going to the ground, he has to maintain control of the ball upon contacting the ground. The term that’s commonly used is ‘surviving the ground.’ A lot of people refer to that. So, as he’s going to the ground, he has the elements of two feet and control, but because he’s going to the ground, he has to maintain control of the ball when he does go to the ground.”
When Reiss pointed out that Henry had two hands on the ball, Anderson said:
“Well, if [Henry] had maintained control of the ball with two hands, even if the ball were to touch the ground, if you don’t lose control of the ball after it touches the ground, that would still be a catch.”
Watch the play below:
The officials ruled that this touchdown catch by Hunter Henry was incomplete 👀
Do you agree with the call? https://t.co/2SPiUSBjeG
The decision to overturn the Patriots' touchdown was unpopular on social media, but per the rules, it seems like the replay booth made the correct decision. New England settled for a field goal after the touchdown was ruled out as an incompletion and eventually lost the game 33-26.