Belichick on Lions’ Raiola: ‘Tough day for him’

Dominic Raiola is now 0-4 lifetime against the Patriots. (USATSI)

With the Lions lined up and about to take a knee at the end of their 34-9 loss to the Patriots on Sunday, Lions center Dominic Raiola dived at defensive end Zach Moore's knees in what was widely described as a cheap shot.

Here's what happened ...

Afterward, Raiola explained his thought process, saying, "I cut him. We took a knee, so I cut the nose [tackle]. They went for six [a touchdown]. They went for a touchdown at two minutes. They could have took three knees and the game could have been over. It's football. He wants to keep playing football, let's play football. Not a big deal. It's football."

On Monday, Patriots coach Bill Belichick was asked about the play, and he took this not-so-subtle jab at Raiola.

"Sure there was a lot of frustration there with Raiola. He's never beaten us. Tough day for him." - Belichick with subtle tweak of Lions C

— Tom E. Curran (@tomecurran) November 24, 2014

Belichick, of course, is right. In his 14-year career, Raiola is 0-4 against New England. Making matters worse is this: According to the Pro Football Focus metrics, Raiola had a negative performance for Detroit -- his fourth-worst game of the season.

NFL Hot News

Report: Browns WR Josh Gordon will play 20-30 snaps today



Josh Gordon is one of the best wide receivers in the NFL. He was the most productive WR in fantasy last season. He is the Browns' best offensive weapon by far, and he will be making his season debut today versus the Falcons as his 10-game suspension has ended. But if you believe ESPN's Adam Schefter and his sources, Gordon's talents won't be unleashed to the fullest extent this afternoon. Schefter tweeted this morning that a league source has told him Gordon is expected to be on the field for only 20-30 plays in Atlanta.



The Browns can give us the sense that they will be cautious with Gordon due to concerns over his conditioning or football shape -- he had not done any football activities with the team for almost three months before this week. But the Browns are in a (ahem) dog fight in the AFC North. They are technically in last place but are just a half of a game out of first at 6-4. Every game is critical for the Browns at this point, and I scoff at the notion that they will just ride with Andrew Hawkins and Taylor Gabriel when they've got a stallion in the barn waiting for the reins to be taken off.When Gordon returned from his two-game suspension in Week 3 last season, he played 70 of the team's 73 offensive snaps. He caught 10 passes for 146 yards and a score. He added a 22-yard rush for good measure. I know two weeks do not equal three months away from the football field, but there have been no reports stating that Gordon is out of shape. I'd be shocked if he played fewer than 30 snaps against a very vulnerable Falcons defense. And even if that is true, you can bet Brian Hoyer will be looking for his All-Pro receiver whenever he is on the field. I think Gordon is a top-20 fantasy wideout today, an easy WR2 in all leagues.