Cris Collinsworth needed almost a full minute before he could find the words.
After Drake Maye’s damaging interception against the Seahawks on Wednesday night, 56 seconds passed before the NBC analyst finally weighed in on the play that effectively cost the Patriots the game.
“I can’t believe that throw… Wow,” Collinsworth said as the broadcast returned to his reaction. “I mean, there are certain things you just can’t do or try when you have field goal range and overtime in your grasp. And that was the play — off his back foot and fading away and didn’t get it. Out of bounds.
“Ouch,” he added, summing up the moment.
With the Patriots trailing the Seahawks 13-10, facing 3rd-and-5 and only 26 seconds remaining, Maye came under pressure and forced a dangerous throw toward Mack Hollins along the right sideline. Seattle cornerback Josh Jobe capitalized, pulling off a toe-tapping interception that sealed the game’s decisive moment.
Officials ruled Jobe’s feet in bounds after replay confirmed it.
“A pick! A terrible decision!” play-by-play announcer Mike Tirico yelled.
“Josh Jobe. One. Two [in counting his feet on the replay]. Ball game,” he added.
Maye’s only game with multiple interceptions last season came during the Patriots’ Super Bowl loss to the Seahawks in February when he threw two in the 29-13 defeat.
To start his third NFL season on Wednesday, the 24-year-old quarterback threw three interceptions.
Tirico and Collinsworth both covered the Super Bowl at Levi’s Stadium on Feb. 8 as NBC had the broadcasting rights to the big game. They watched the same results play out in the in a Super Bowl rematch.
New England was up 10-0 in the second half and seemed to have all the momentum. Even without injured Sam Darnold, Seattle scored 13 straight points including a 45-yard touchdown from backup QB Drew Lock to wideout Jaxson Smith-Njigba.
The Seahawks picked off Maye three times in the fourth quarter on consecutive possessions, which set up their scoring opportunities.
In Week 2, the Patriots will travel to Pittsburgh to face the Steelers on Sunday, Sept. 20 while the Seahawks will be on the road in Arizona.