On the opening play of the Patriots-Titans game Sunday, Tennessee wide receiver Darius Jennings caught Stephen Gostkowski’s kickoff and sliced through the New England kick coverage. Jennings was finally pushed out of bounds at the Patriots 40-yard line after a 58-yard return.
The Titans scored a touchdown seven plays later and never relinquished the lead en route to a 34-10 victory. Patriots head coach Bill Belichick told reporters his team “didn’t do a good job” on kick coverage or returning the ball. That was a common theme during his postgame press conference.
Asked about the Patriots’ third-down defense, Belichick said, “They were better than we were in that area, along with a lot of other ones.