Unparalleled knowledge puts Bill Belichick in position to shoot for fourth Super Bowl
Bill Belichick is a Hall of Fame NFL coach whose unparalleled knowledge could vault him to a fourth Super Bowl
He is almost certainly no worse than the No. 2 coach in NFL history, behind Vince Lombardi and above every other competitor.
Bill Belichick is often lambasted by the media for his one-word, one-concept answers to their questions, but his style is often reminiscent of Hall of Fame pitcher Greg Maddux. Throughout his career as a stellar hurler for the Atlanta Braves and the Chicago Cubs, Maddux said very little when it came to analyzing his own work.
Maddux never wanted to give a thing away that his opponents could use against him in a future start, even if it was two or three years later. However, Maddux was so sharp with his pitches and so knowledgeable about the hitters that he was facing, that you could figure out what Maddux was thinking just by studying him as he painted his masterpieces on the mound.
Maddux, for all his talent and accomplishment that allowed him to be a first-ballot Hall of Famer a year before John Smoltz accomplished the same thing Tuesday, did not have an overly impressive fastball and was never a radar gun All-Star. But nobody ever thought the game better while on the mound.
Which brings us back to Belichick. The New England Patriots’ leader is a man who has been living and breathing coaching since the 1950s when he was studying his father Steve’s book on football scouting. But as much as Belichick knew about breaking down an opponent’s strengths and weaknesses before he became a teenager, he has continued his education for more than 50 years and he knows more about coming up with a winning gameplan than any coach who has ever stalked the sidelines.
Lombardi, the greatest coach in NFL history and perhaps the top coach in North American sports history, could not come close to Belichick as a strategist. The game was simpler in the 1960s when Lombardi led the Green Bay Packers to five NFL championships, a 9-1 postseason record and the first two Super Bowls.
Lombardi made his bones by getting the most out of his players and inspiring them – usually through fear – but his game strategies were simple for his time. He did not have the complicated playbook of Tom Landry or Don Shula. His offense was based on the power sweep – “a seal here and a seal here, and you run the ball in the alley” – and each player simply did his job to perfection.
Lombardi’s defense was a bit more involved, but his team’s stellar execution of nearly every play was the source of its excellence.
Belichick couldn’t come close to Lombardi as an inspirational figure. He probably has to take a back seat to your eighth-grade history teacher in that department. But Belichick arms all of his players with a winning formula.
Nobody breaks down tape like Belichick, and when he looks at an opponent’s recent performances, he can figure out strengths and weaknesses in an instant. He comes up with a winning strategy in a matter of moments, and then he lets his assistant coaches and players know how they are going to attack and try to win each week.
When Belichick comes up with a gameplan, he paints a masterpiece, much as Maddux did on the mound. Most coaches see their opponents in black and white and a few shades of grey – far fewer than 50 – but Belichick see them in full color. He gives all of his charges an in-depth look of what the Patriots’ opponents are going to do.
He demands his players know his opponents, because that knowledge helps them execute against them. He wants his players to study their opponents on film, but that’s not enough. He wants them to know their strengths and weaknesses and their personal accomplishments as well. During the regular season, he will quiz his players to make sure they are prepared for the opponent they are facing.
Winning the AFC East has become a fact of life for Belichick and the Patriots. While we tend to diminish that accomplishment since it’s all about winning the Super Bowl and hoisting the Lombardi Trophy, but it’s worth noting that Belichick has won the division title in 12 of the 15 years he has been coaching in New England.
Breaking it down further, the Pats have won the AFC East crown 11 of the last 12 years, and they finished 11-5 in 2008, the only year in that streak where they did not finish first. You might remember that Tom Brady’s season ended when he suffered a knee injury in the opener and the Pats had to play a backup (Matt Cassel) for the next 15 games.
Belichick knows what he is doing, and he is going up against a formidable opponent in John Harbaugh and the Baltimore Ravens. Harbaugh has gotten the best of Belichick in two-of-three playoff meetings.
In those games, the Patriots did not compare to the Ravens from a defensive perspective. Baltimore had Ray Lewis and Ed Reed and a bunch of marauders. That’s no longer the case.
Belichick and his players begin their chase for a fourth Super Bowl title on Saturday, something that has eluded the franchise for a decade. There’s a nasty and brutal road to travel, and Belichick’s team will be fully prepared every step of the way.