The Miami Dolphins didn't stand a chance Sunday against the New England Patriots.
So, why was Tom Brady -- and both starting units, as a matter of fact -- still on the field late in the fourth quarter with New England up by 30-plus points? Was Bill Belichick unnecessarily running up the score on former assistant Brian Flores?
Our own Tom E. Curran posed this question to Kyle Van Noy on Tuesday's upcoming episode of "Quick Slants," and the Patriots linebacker gave a pretty insightful answer.
“It’s football," Van Noy told Curran. "We’re trying to dominate the opponent. We only get 16 chances.
"People think that’s a lot, but it’s really not. You get to showcase your talents and all the hard work you put in in the offseason, so you want to be able to play as many snaps as you can, because you never know when your last is.
"And with the mindset that we have here, we’re trying to dominate."
Van Noy offers good perspective here. Fans would prefer Brady and New England's other stars sit late in blowouts to avoid injury, but if you're a Patriots player, you want to play every snap possible, because any NFL career can be taken away on one play.
Oh, and because the Patriots want to win by as much as possible.
Van Noy dropped plenty more wisdom in his "Quick Slants" debut, which you can watch on NBC Sports Boston at 6 p.m. ET.
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