Upon review of the film, Chicago Bears safety Jaquan Brisker is convinced New England Patriots quarterback Mac Jones was trying to hit him below the belt during Monday’s game at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Mass.
That’s because four plays before Brisker was briefly knocked out of the Bears’ 33-14 victory after Jones kicked him in the groin while sliding, the quarterback attempted to trip him at the end of another slide.
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Jones kicked Brisker with his right foot, lifting his leg high into the air at the end of a slide as Brisker attempted to jump over him and avoid contact on the second snap of the second quarter. Jones gained 8 yards on the play, beginning his slide at the Bears 37-yard line. As he approached the 35, Jones lifted his leg and struck Brisker, who fortunately needed only one snap to regroup on the sideline before reentering the game.
On the first play in question, at the end of the first quarter, Jones fled the pocket and gained 10 yards to the Patriots 38-yard line. He slid down with Brisker and Eddie Jackson nearby. As Brisker went past, Jones bent back his right leg at the end of the slide in an effort to make contact with the defender.
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“After looking back at it, the first slide he tried to trip me,” Brisker said. “The second time, he purposefully put his foot up. I mean if you stick your foot out there, I thought the first one was pretty dirty. Obviously everybody has seen the second one. Pretty dirty.
“I think he should get fined. Or something needs to happen.”
Three plays after the high kick, Brisker made a one-handed interception of a Jones pass.
Plenty of rules are in place to protect quarterbacks from defenders and illegal contact. If more players on more teams get the feeling Jones is not playing the right way, he eventually could be in for a reckoning.
“Somebody is going to react,” Brisker said.
