Former Jets linebacker Mo Lewis says Drew Bledsoe is to blame for the hit that launched the Patriots dynasty

Mo Lewis, the former New York Jets linebacker whose hit on Drew Bledsoe in 2001 indirectly set the New England Patriots on the path to a dynasty, has spoken publicly about the play and placed responsibility on the quarterback himself.

The collision came on Sept. 23, 2001, when Bledsoe, then the Patriots' starting quarterback, scrambled along the sideline and tried to get out of bounds. Lewis crushed him on the play. Bledsoe was slow to get up and was taken to a hospital with critical injuries. One of his lungs had collapsed, and he had internal bleeding after a blood vessel in his chest was sheared.

Bledsoe's father, Mac, described the severity in a February 2020 episode of "E:60." "If he'd have been on his way home, he would have either died in the car accident when he lost consciousness, or he would've died from the blood loss," he said.

The injury changed the course of both Bledsoe's career and the franchise. With him out, the Patriots turned to backup Tom Brady to finish the game. Brady kept the starting job for the rest of the season, and New England went 11-3 with him in the lineup on the way to an underdog victory over the Rams in Super Bowl XXXVI.

Bledsoe did return to play quarterback for the Patriots in the AFC Championship Game against the Steelers. He was traded the following offseason, after the Super Bowl title, while Brady went on to win five more Super Bowls as New England's starter.

Lewis, breaking his silence in the upcoming book "Brady vs. Belichick" by longtime NFL reporter Gary Myers, as noted by ESPN's Rich Cimini, said the responsibility for the play lies with Bledsoe. He pointed to the quarterback's recent contract and his role as a passer.

"[Bledsoe] just signed a $100 million deal to be what type of quarterback? A passing quarterback, correct?" Lewis says in the book. "Had he not got outside the pocket and ran with the ball, would we be talking about this? Who caused the event? The person who was with the ball."

Lewis added that Bledsoe was doing something he had not signed up for. "He signed up to be a passing quarterback. What do I do? I stop the people with the ball. It's just another play for me. But it's a different play for him."

Lewis is known for the hit, but he had a notable career of his own. Over 13 NFL seasons with the Jets, he earned three Pro Bowl selections and two All-Pro nods.

He also downplayed the play's significance. "It's really irrelevant to me," Lewis said. "It was just another play to me. To you all, it's a big game-changing, history-changing play. I've never gone back to watch the play. If people want to talk about it, I don't hide from it. But it has no importance to me."