Bill Belichick never has thought the way other people think he should think.

It was early December in San Diego in 1995. Belichick was coaching a Browns team that was on its way to 5-11, not to mention leaving Cleveland for Baltimore.

The Chargers led 31-10 and the Browns had the ball in the closing seconds. Belichick called a timeout and sent Matt Stover in to kick a 40-yard field goal as a crusty old sportswriter (someone else) cackled, "First time in NFL history the losing coach ran up the score!"

Belichick later shrugged and said he thought Stover needed some work.

Over the many years since, Belichick has stayed unconventional on his journey to the Hall of Fame via New England. He's gone for it and not always succeeded on eyebrow-raising fourth downs deep in his own territory. He's shockingly dumped big-name players a year early and often succeeded afterward. And he's done unusual things like last week, when he rotated four players at the three interior offensive line positions. It didn't pan out in a loss at Miami.

After a Patriots loss, it's usually not a good idea to make any long-lasting condemnations of something unusual that Belichick did. Since 2003, he's 34-4 after a loss. He's had four two-game losing streaks and zero three-game losing streaks.

Third-and-two

Three observations …

• The Bears averaged 7.25 yards on first-down plays and still lost at home against the Bills.

• The Giants gave up a league-low 2.73 yards on first-down plays and still lost by 21 points at Detroit.

• The Cowboys finished 8-8 with a plus-8 turnover ratio last year. This year they're 0-1 with a league-worst minus-4 ratio.

Two predictions …

• Chicago will be a grumpy place as Jay Cutler throws two more picks in a loss.

• Despite the Jets' No. 1-ranked defense, Green Bay will be a happier place as Aaron Rodgers throws four touchdown passes.

MARK CRAIG