Bill Belichick: Patriots 'Made a Mistake' on Lateral Play in Walk-Off Loss to Raiders

The New England Patriots lost to the Las Vegas Raiders on Sunday in the most unlikely way when Raiders defensive end Chandler Jones returned a lateral from Patriots wide receiver Jakobi Meyers 48 yards for a touchdown with no time left on the clock.

After the bizarre finish to the game, Patriots head coach Bill Belichick did his best to explain what happened from his perspective, telling reporters, "The play didn't work. Made a mistake on the play."

He seemed annoyed at the Patriots' execution in the game's waning moments, adding, "We've talked about situational football. We talk about it every week."

After the Patriots overcame a 17-3 halftime deficit with 21 points in the second half, the Raiders tied the game at 24 with 0:32 left in the fourth quarter with a nine-play, 81-yard drive. New England got the ball back and drove to its own 45-yard line, and that's when the madness ensued.

Patriots running back Rhamondre Stevenson ripped off a 23-yard run before inexplicably deciding to lateral the ball to Meyers, who then tried to lateral the ball back to quarterback Mac Jones. The ball landed in the hands of Chandler Jones, who rumbled over New England's second-year signal-caller on his way to the end zone.

Belichick also explained why the Patriots didn't take a shot to the end zone on the final play:

It was surprising to see a Belichick-coached team make such a crushing mistake. When Jones handed the ball off to Stevenson, it seemed clear that New England was playing for overtime.

The Patriots (7-7) will try to regroup before another tough matchup next week, as it will host the Cincinnati Bengals (10-4) on Christmas Eve.