In the fourth quarter of the Patriots’ divisional-round victory over the Chargers, Los Angeles quarterback Philip Rivers threw into a well-disguised double coverage of tight end Hunter Henry, and New England linebacker Kyle Van Noy broke on the ball.
He put himself in position for an interception, but the pass glanced off his hands for an incompletion and a disappointed Van Noy dropped to the ground and did a push-up.
“Dropping that easy pick, that buttercup interception Philip Rivers threw,” Van Noy said. “I did my push-ups on the sideline, too. They only showed me doing one, but I did one on the field, but I got like nervous because I thought that I had to get off the field or whatever so I did it on the sideline.”
It’s a punishment Van Noy has given himself since high school.
“It’s always 10 when you drop a pick,” Van Noy said, “no matter if it’s in practice or the game field. I always make fun of people, including myself when there’s opportunities when there’s a tip ball and you drop (an interception),” Van Noy said. “I always say, ‘You don’t want to be great?’ because those that are great make those plays.”
Accountability is a big thing with Van Noy, the versatile inside linebacker who came out of nowhere (or at least Detroit) two years ago and will on Sunday start in Super Bowl LIII, his third Super Bowl with the Patriots. An afterthought when the Patriots acquired him, Van Noy has become one of New England’s most productive defenders and a team leader.
His arrival in 2016 was the sneaky first clue that the Patriots were considering the move that sent Jamie Collins to the Browns. Just days before the trade deadline, New England sent a sixth-rounder to Detroit for Van Noy and a seventh-round pick. A 2014 second-rounder, Van Noy had not impressed in just seven starts with the Lions over his first 2½ seasons. At the time of the trade, it appeared he would be a depth and special-teams player. A week later, the much-heralded Collins was in Cleveland, and Van Noy was starting for an eventual Super Bowl champion.
“When you’re put in a chance to succeed and you’re put on the field, of course things are going to change,” Van Noy said.
Van Noy has the ideal versatility for a Belichick defense. He tends to line up off the ball, but has been very active and effective in the pass rush. According to Austin Gayle of Pro Football, no off-the-ball linebacker rushed the passer more than Van Noy this season, and none of them recorded more quarterback pressures than Van Noy. He also had two sacks in the AFC championship against Kansas City.
Van Noy adapted to the defense so quickly that head coach Bill Belichick observed earlier this season that it seemed like he had “played here for 10 years.”
When asked what the Patriots need to do to contain a Rams offense that was second in the league with 32.9 points per game, Van Noy certainly sounded like a player who’s long been invested in this team’s approach to big games.
“As a team, just continue to do what the coaches game plan us to do and execute at a high level,” Van Noy said. “I feel like we’re comfortable in our abilities and execution as a defense. And if we come together and play Patriot football, we’ll be okay.”
(Dave Brown is a freelance correspondent who covers the Patriots for the Monitor. Follow him on Twitter @ThatDaveBrown.)