Bill Belichick and Tom Brady have won six Super Bowls together in New England. Tom owns the edge in Super Bowl rings after picking up another in Tampa Bay after leaving Foxboro, and people have nitpicked Bill Belichick’s legacy ever since the Patriots’ dynasty ended and Belichick parted ties with the Pats.
Tom Brady’s father, Tom Brady Sr., is here to defend Bill Belichick as being equally important to the Patriots’ success. He talked to the Boston Globe and ‘went to bat’ for Belichick.
Tom Brady’s father told Christopher L. Gasper. “I don’t think it’s fair that everyone claims it’s all Tom. Bill is unquestionably the best coach in football. His last three or four years in New England were a disaster. That’s too bad.
It wasn’t all ‘greatest coach in football’ accolades, though. Tom Brady’s father did speak about the effect Bill Belichick’s ego played in his career. Saying, “Bill is tough. He runs a military system. It is a different generation. Bill is an excellent coach. However, he has poor interpersonal skills. That is the bottom line.
Tom Brady’s father added, “Ego may get in the way of things. I believe it did with Bill. Now, he’s in a situation where he’s been crucified by everyone for the previous few years, and his rose has lost a lot of its shine.
When Tom Brady came to Foxboro for his homage this season, Tom Brady Sr. claims Patriots owner Robert Kraft virtually conceded to the Bradys that he was mistaken in letting Tommy go and siding with Bill Belichick.
Brady’s father told the Globe: “He just said, ‘I made a mistake.'” He told us this back in September. We don’t all make the best decisions, but he’s made a lot of decent ones over time. But I know Tommy won somewhere else, which irritates him. Not that he won, but that he won after Bill declared he was finished.”
Decisions are simple in retrospect. Knowing what everyone now knows, the Patriots would undoubtedly have chosen Tom Brady for a few more years over Bill Belichick. As a lifelong Buccaneers fan, I’m very delighted with how things turned out.