Why did Omar Bradley limit George S. Patton's attempt to close the Falaise gap?

General Omar Bradley limited George S. Patton’s attempt to close the Falaise gap because he feared that such an aggressive maneuver would leave Patton’s flanks weak and vulnerable to a German counterattack.1

While Patton was eager to complete the encirclement of the German forces retreating from Normandy, Bradley maintained a more cautious approach. By the time the gap between Falaise and Argentan was finally closed on August 20, 1944, a significant number of German troops—estimated between 20,000 and 40,000—had already managed to escape.1