Football Interview with Belichick - Page 2

KCDC · 01:01 PM

Jason Cole of Yahoo Sports had a recent interview with Belichick that touches on judging QBs (using Cassel as an example) and why teams are bad. I thought it might be of some interest here. http://sports.yahoo.com/nfl/news?slu...yhoo&type=lgns

It’s 10 p.m. on a Wednesday night and New England Patriots coach Bill Belichick is sitting behind his desk in his rather drab office, featuring a computer in front of him and a steno pad full of notes on the desk. On the windowsill behind him is a package of blank CDs. Compared to most coaches such as the Miami Dolphins’ Tony Sparano, the Atlanta Falcons’ Mike Smith(notes) or even the Kansas City Chiefs’ Todd Haley, Belichick’s office is little more than a closet.

But dressed in his Patriots sweats and sporting bare feet, Belichick is very content. Even after three Super Bowl titles, a fourth championship appearance and two titles as a defensive coordinator in 34 years in the NFL, Belichick, 57, doesn’t think about other challenges outside of football. Rather, he grinds away till the wee hours. However, he recently gave up more than an hour of his time to talk about a variety of subjects regarding the Patriots and the NFL, in general:

Jason Cole: Earlier this season when your offense was struggling – Wes Welker(notes) and Randy Moss(notes) were hurt and quarterback Tom Brady(notes) was still working his way back in after a year off – you resisted the temptation to completely go back to the type of running game that fueled your title teams earlier this decade. Why?

Belichick: I think it’s a question of how you want to use your personnel and where you think your players are … good offensive teams in this league are teams that are more balanced, can throw the ball and have playmakers out on the field. To get in there and run the power 20 times … yeah, it’s OK. It shortens the game and it controls things if that’s what you want to be and if you have a good defense and that’s the way you want to play. But I think we’re capable of doing more than that and it takes our quarterback out of the game. It takes a slot receiver like Wes Welker out of the game and that’s not what we want to do. If you’re trying to not put as much on our quarterback like we were in ’01 and a little bit in ’02, at that point, that was the way to go. And some of that is a function of who your running back is. Some guys are better running behind a fullback, some are better in a 1-back system, just like your passing game is a little bit of a function of who your quarterback is.

Cole: A lot of coaches would have resisted the temptation to trade a player like Richard Seymour(notes) because they are all about winning now, this season. You made a very pragmatic move to trade him on the eve of the season. Can you explain how you were able to fight that tendency as a coach?

Belichick: We gave up a significant player and we gained a significant asset … you know all the situations surrounding the decision.

Cole: Right, but most coaches who sit in your chair think overwhelmingly about today, this week; how am I going to get through this season.

Belichick: I think about that, too (laughs).

Cole: Yes, but you’re taking a larger-scope view when you make that deal.

Belichick: I can’t speak for everybody else. I mean, we’re worried about this year’s team, we’re worried about today, but we’re going to have a schedule next year, too, and we’re going to play football then, too. There’s a balance of this year and years in the future. Do we consider that? Yes, but in the end you look at the level of compensation and you do it. Had it been for another level of compensation, would we do it? Maybe not. I don’t know. There’s a point where you say yes and a point where you say no and there’s a real fine line in the middle where it really depends on how bad you want to make the trade. It’s like anything else, if you really want to do it, you might take less. If you don’t, it probably would take more.

Cole: How long did those discussions take?

Belichick: We had been talking to them for a number of weeks. Not necessarily about Richard, but about other things like the (Derrick) Burgess trade. That trade was going around since last spring. There were a number of players thrown around. I would say it was probably 24 to 48 hours with Seymour. They brought it up. … Again, who’s available on your team? Really, probably everybody is available at the right price.

Cole: So if I gave you six first-round NFL draft picks, Brady might be available?

Belichick: Each guy’s price is different. If a team asks, you see what the price is. Now, is Jerod Mayo(notes) available? No, not really. But there are certain players who are young that have a certain number of years left on their contract that you want on your team, so you’re really not going to trade them. Those guys are realistically not available, no. But is everybody else available for a certain price on every team? I would say, for the most part, they probably are. Who’s willing to give that? What you want and what someone else is willing to give, that’s usually very different. In this case (the Seymour trade – in return, the Patriots get Oakland’s first-round pick in the 2011 draft), it worked.

Cole: How much longer do you see yourself doing this?

Belichick: Right now, I’m just getting ready for (the next game).

Cole: So you’re not sure you’re even going to get past Sunday.

Belichick: That’s long-term for me (smiles) … four more days.

Cole: OK, do you have some idea of what else …

Belichick: No, I like what I do and I’m doing it.

Cole: You love the mental challenge of it?

Belichick: I really do. I like every part of it. The offseason, the in-season, the preparation for games, the young players, the old players … there’s a lot of different aspects to the job and that’s one of the great things about it. You’re not locked into one part, one thing. I can be a part of anything I want to be a part of, so I like that, it’s fun. … Every season presents a multitude of challenges.

Cole: Do you do any other things that fill your time? Jimmy Johnson used to love to trade stocks.

Belichick: That’s not my thing, but he still does. Competitively, I get it here, so I don’t need to go compete in something else to fulfill that. I have plenty of competition in football. I love competition, but I’m not looking to compete in something else.

Cole: So you don’t have to do play racquetball or something else?

Belichick: I do that for recreation. I see my kids play and that stuff, but that’s a whole different involvement. It’s more emotional than my involvement with this team, as screwed up as that sounds. But it’s only temporary because it’s not like (my kids) are going to play for that team for all time. But for that particular time, I’m emotionally invested in that, definitely. Absolutely.

Cole: Do you scream on the sidelines at your kids’ games?

Belichick: I keep it in, but sometimes I’d like to.

Cole: My son just started crew and I don’t know anything about it. It’s his deal, so I just keep my mouth shut and cheer him on.

Belichick: Yep, look dumb and say “all right.” That’s perfect.

Cole: When you’re looking at quarterbacks, what do you examine most?

Belichick: One of the things we saw last year with (Matt) Cassel when we put him out there: … You put a guy in there who hasn’t played, the first couple of weeks you wonder if you made the right decision. And then, as they grow in the offense and they control it and it’s their offense and their team, sometimes those players go from here (holds his hand low) to here (holds his hand high) and sometimes they don’t. Sometimes they just muddle along and they never grow. Cassel grew from the San Diego game last year to the Miami game to the San Francisco game. There were a few plays at first and then it was, “Hey, this guy is a legitimate starting NFL quarterback.” The funny thing is that happened after Cassel wasn’t really that great in preseason. He was OK, but nothing like what we saw in the season.

It changed when he took all the walkthroughs. He was the guy in the meetings, he took all the reps in practice, he was the guy with the game plan, he was the guy saying, “Hey, I don’t like this route, I like this.” He had the input and it was catered to him, just like how Brady says, “I don’t like that play.” OK, we’ve got plenty of other plays. But that might be a play that Cassel likes running, but he doesn’t say anything because he’s not the quarterback at the time. When he became the quarterback, he started talking about it and saying what he liked. I think all quarterbacks go through that. So where they are now and where they are going to be, as they grow into it and the coaches figure out who they are, sometimes the only way you find out is to actually let them do it.

Cole: Yeah, but you actively are looking for that answer in advance of just doing it.

Belichick: Yeah, but you never really know until you get them in there. Yeah, this guy can read this and he can do that, he can handle this type of situation and play. Then you get them out there and you find out that he may not do that, but he’s pretty good at this other stuff and you do more of that. If he’s got a good release on the deep ball, throw more deep balls. If he’s not good on the deep ball, but he’s good on the run, do that. As long as the guy is a good decision-maker and he’s accurate and he’s consistent, you can give him something you can count on and you have a pretty good chance. The hard part is when they’re inconsistent or they’re not very accurate or they don’t make good decisions because ultimately you’re going to need a throw, they’re going to miss it; you’re going to need a decision, they’re not going to make it and that’s when it comes apart.

Cole: So accuracy and decision-making are the most important things?

Belichick: For me, yeah.

Cole: Can you even distinguish between the two?

Belichick: What’s one without the other? If you make the wrong decision, you’ve got problems, and if you can’t throw the ball, even if you make the right decision, you’ve got problems. So if you’ve got those two, you’ve got Joe Montana. If you can’t do one of those two, then what’s the future? … If you have those two things, you have a quarterback. If you don’t have those two things, you’re going to have to dumb it down. You’re either going to have to limit the decisions he makes or take the accuracy element out of it by either not throwing over 10 yards or not throwing outside the numbers. You’re going to have to do something that changes the way you play offense.

Cole: Why are there so many bad teams around the league this year?

Belichick: Here’s the only thing I’ll say: I think to have a really good team in this league, you have to make a lot, a lot of good decisions. You have to have a lot of good people, players, coaches, whatever. You need a lot of those. Conversely, to not be competitive, you would have to have a lot of bad decisions. One bad decision is not going to do it, one bad player is not going to do it, one bad coach is not going to do it. You’re going to have to collectively, over a cumulative period of time, make a long series of bad decisions and accumulate a lot of players who are substandard for their position. There have to be a multitude of things that go wrong.

Cole: Because you can keep yourself average for a long time?

Belichick: That’s the system. If you don’t have good players, you have money to spend on players. If you have a bunch of good players, you eventually run out of money and you can’t keep them all and somebody else gets them. That’s the system, it keeps everybody average. We’ve seen teams be really good just on coaching. We’ve seen teams be competitive with just a few good players.

Cole: Jimmy Johnson once said, if you don’t take too many risks, you can win nine or 10 games a year.

Belichick: Jimmy probably said the same thing to you that he once said to me: “You’re really only competing with about 10 teams a year. If you just say out of the way, the other 20 teams will screw it up themselves. Whether it’s ownership or personnel or coaching or some combination of factors.” Ego, internal struggle, something will happen to two-thirds of the teams, that was Jimmy’s theory. That leaves you with about 10 teams that you’re going to have to really battle with. Those teams have it together. They’re going to make good decisions and if you play bad football, they’re going to take advantage of it. They’re going to find some undrafted guy or some middle-round pick or some veteran free agent who is going to spark their team. Pittsburgh is always going to be there. Indianapolis is always going to be there. They may not win it, but they’ll be there. You’re going to have to beat them. Philadelphia is going to be there. Yeah, [quarterback Donovan] McNabb might get hurt one year and they might go 7-9, but they’re going to be there. You’re still battling them on every front.

Hoover · 11-06-2009, 01:12 PM

And here is why the Chiefs suck ass

Belichick: Here’s the only thing I’ll say: I think to have a really good team in this league, you have to make a lot, a lot of good decisions. You have to have a lot of good people, players, coaches, whatever. You need a lot of those. Conversely, to not be competitive, you would have to have a lot of bad decisions. One bad decision is not going to do it, one bad player is not going to do it, one bad coach is not going to do it. You’re going to have to collectively, over a cumulative period of time, make a long series of bad decisions and accumulate a lot of players who are substandard for their position. There have to be a multitude of things that go wrong.

Ralphy Boy · 11-06-2009, 01:19 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by KCDC

Belichick: One of the things we saw last year with (Matt) Cassel when we put him out there: … You put a guy in there who hasn’t played, the first couple of weeks you wonder if you made the right decision. And then, as they grow in the offense and they control it and it’s their offense and their team, sometimes those players go from here (holds his hand low) to here (holds his hand high) and sometimes they don’t. Sometimes they just muddle along and they never grow. Cassel grew from the San Diego game last year to the Miami game to the San Francisco game. There were a few plays at first and then it was, “Hey, this guy is a legitimate starting NFL quarterback.” The funny thing is that happened after Cassel wasn’t really that great in preseason. He was OK, but nothing like what we saw in the season.

It changed when he took all the walkthroughs. He was the guy in the meetings, he took all the reps in practice, he was the guy with the game plan, he was the guy saying, “Hey, I don’t like this route, I like this.” He had the input and it was catered to him, just like how Brady says, “I don’t like that play.” OK, we’ve got plenty of other plays. But that might be a play that Cassel likes running, but he doesn’t say anything because he’s not the quarterback at the time. When he became the quarterback, he started talking about it and saying what he liked. I think all quarterbacks go through that. So where they are now and where they are going to be, as they grow into it and the coaches figure out who they are, sometimes the only way you find out is to actually let them do it.

I can just imagine how well it went over when he tried telling Haley that he didn't like one of his plays.

**OnTheWarpath15** · 11-06-2009, 01:22 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ralphy Boy

I can just imagine how well it went over when he tried telling Haley that he didn't like one of his plays.

Pioli Zombie · 11-06-2009, 02:04 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ralphy Boy

I can just imagine how well it went over when he tried telling Haley that he didn't like one of his plays.

You know at some point you have to ask, is Haley the problem?
For as much as Chiefs fans only concerned about Chiefs football want to say "Cassel can't play" the fact is he played and played well last year. And yes he had a better supporting cast. No shit. Better supporting cast equals better play. Guess what? Put Brady on the Chiefs and he'd do better than Cassel because he's better than Cassel. But he wouldn't be an All-Pro. Ask Archie Manning or Jim Plunkett about this.
Posted via Mobile Device

Amnorix · 11-06-2009, 03:04 PM

At what point are you guys, collectively, going to accept that it takes more than one year to turn around the complete disaster that is the late 2000 Chiefs?

As BB said, it takes years of suck, in a number of areas, to get to the serious levels of suck that the Chiefs find themselves in now. And it takes more than one year to fix all that suck.

'Hamas' Jenkins · 11-06-2009, 03:10 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Amnorix

At what point are you guys, collectively, going to accept that it takes more than one year to turn around the complete disaster that is the late 2000 Chiefs.

At what point are you guys going to realize that no one was expecting a one year turnaround. What they were looking for are signs of progression and a consistent direction. Not waffling and incompetence.

Start a re-rebuild by gutting the roster, and signing a bunch of broke dick nothings who won't even be able to help the team in two years is not progress.

I'm sure Zach Thomas really taught the Chiefs a lot about how to win when he was riding a stationary bike, getting cut, and then suing the team to steal a salary he didn't earn.

I'm sure Mike Goff, and the draft choice given up for Eat Dookie and Alleman really helps Cassel in both the short and long term.

Cutting young guys (Pollard, Richardson) with upside for old guys (Brown, Goff, Ndukwe) with no upside or ability is a stupid ****ing move. Period.

Bringing in a bunch of geriatric receivers who can't get open to help your 60 million dollar QB (who you had for 14) is ****ing stupid. Targeting those same never-was pieces of shit over the only legitimate playmaker on offense is grotesquely stupid, and an outright fireable offense just for the sheer dipshittery of the move.

No one was expecting this team to be 4-4. We were expecting this to be a collection of young guys growing together and showing promise. Not a bunch of older guys parroting a company line and kissing ass because that's how you "win".

This entire regime is built on propaganda to obfuscate their failures in player acquisition and development, and this model, without Tom Brady and Bill Belichick, is an abject ****ing failure.

Amnorix · 11-06-2009, 03:24 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by 'Hamas' Jenkins

At what point are you guys going to realize that no one was expecting a one year turnaround. What they were looking for are signs of progression and a consistent direction. Not waffling and incompetence.

Start a re-rebuild by gutting the roster, and signing a bunch of broke dick nothings who won't even be able to help the team in two years is not progress.

I'm sure Zach Thomas really taught the Chiefs a lot about how to win when he was riding a stationary bike, getting cut, and then suing the team to steal a salary he didn't earn.

I'm sure Mike Goff, and the draft choice given up for Eat Dookie and Alleman really helps Cassel in both the short and long term.

Cutting young guys (Pollard, Richardson) with upside for old guys (Brown, Goff, Ndukwe) with no upside or ability is a stupid ****ing move. Period.

Bringing in a bunch of geriatric receivers who can't get open to help your 60 million dollar QB (who you had for 14) is ****ing stupid. Targeting those same never-was pieces of shit over the only legitimate playmaker on offense is grotesquely stupid, and an outright fireable offense just for the sheer dipshittery of the move.

No one was expecting this team to be 4-4. We were expecting this to be a collection of young guys growing together and showing promise. Not a bunch of older guys parroting a company line and kissing ass because that's how you "win".

This entire regime is built on propaganda to obfuscate their failures in player acquisition and development, and this model, without Tom Brady and Bill Belichick, is an abject ****ing failure.

All in all, I'll take Scott Pioli's team-rebuilding abilities over yours. Just sayin'

Amnorix · 11-06-2009, 03:27 PM

Phrase differently: What Pioli has -- hardware:

What you have: hot air:

Tiger's Fan · 11-06-2009, 03:50 PM

What the **** does Belichick know/hamas

Marcellus · 11-06-2009, 03:58 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by 'Hamas' Jenkins

Start a re-rebuild by gutting the roster, and signing a bunch of broke dick nothings who won't even be able to help the team in two years is not progress.

I'm sure Zach Thomas really taught the Chiefs a lot about how to win when he was riding a stationary bike, getting cut, and then suing the team to steal a salary he didn't earn.

I'm sure Mike Goff, and the draft choice given up for Eat Dookie and Alleman really helps Cassel in both the short and long term.

Cutting young guys (Pollard, Richardson) with upside for old guys (Brown, Goff, Ndukwe) with no upside or ability is a stupid ****ing move. Period.

Bringing in a bunch of geriatric receivers who can't get open to help your 60 million dollar QB (who you had for 14) is ****ing stupid. Targeting those same never-was pieces of shit over the only legitimate playmaker on offense is grotesquely stupid, and an outright fireable offense just for the sheer dipshittery of the move.

No one was expecting this team to be 4-4. We were expecting this to be a collection of young guys growing together and showing promise. Not a bunch of older guys parroting a company line and kissing ass because that's how you "win".

This entire regime is built on propaganda to obfuscate their failures in player acquisition and development, and this model, without Tom Brady and Bill Belichick, is an abject ****ing failure.

I am sure you are aware that the avg age of this team is actually the 3rd youngest in the league right?

September 7, 2009 11:07 AM
Age Rank NFL Team Average Age
1 Redskins 28.02
2 Saints 27.99
3 Cardinals 27.74
3 Patriots 27.74
5 Lions 27.62
6 49ers 27.51
7 Steelers 27.50
8 Vikings 27.48
9 Seahawks 27.41
10 Falcons 27.39
11 Titans 27.29
12 Browns 27.18
13 Jets 27.16
13 Broncos 27.16
15 Bears 27.02
16 Cowboys 26.93
17 Bills 26.93
18 Chargers 26.93
19 Texans 26.89
20 Giants 26.88
21 Ravens 26.83
22 Raiders 26.82
23 Eagles 26.81
24 Rams 26.73
25 Jaguars 26.61
26 Bengals 26.60
27 Dolphins 26.47
28 Bucs 26.46
29 Panthers 26.39
30 Chiefs 26.36
31 Colts 26.34
32 Packers 26.16
Posted by ESPN.com's Mike Sando

DaWolf · 11-06-2009, 04:38 PM

Well this is the same coach who took over an 8-8 Pats team and proceeded to go 5-11 with them in 2000. Pretty sure they signed some vets then too and they lacked a first round pick in the draft that year as well, since they traded it for the coach. People were cursing the guy at the time...

'Hamas' Jenkins · 11-06-2009, 06:49 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Amnorix

Phrase differently: What Pioli has -- hardware.

The typical bullshit response of someone who doesn't have a reply. "Oh you don't work for the NFL."

You know what, there are plenty of dumb mother****ers that work for the NFL, and when Scott Pioli does something to differentiate himself from any of them, then I'll be the first person to give him credit. Until then, he's another ****ing jobber.

And the Patriots team secretary has the same number of rings as Pioli, and one fewer win as GM.

Pioli isn't Belichick. Mangini wasn't Belichick. Crennel wasn't Belichick. Weiss wasn't Belichick. Parcells wasn't Belichick.

When any of those dipshits win anything without him, let me know. Until then, Pioli is just another tagalong.

'Hamas' Jenkins · 11-06-2009, 07:00 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Marcellus

I am sure you are aware that the avg age of this team is actually the 3rd youngest in the league right?

September 7, 2009 11:07 AM
Age Rank NFL Team Average Age
1 Redskins 28.02
2 Saints 27.99
3 Cardinals 27.74
3 Patriots 27.74
5 Lions 27.62
6 49ers 27.51
7 Steelers 27.50
8 Vikings 27.48
9 Seahawks 27.41
10 Falcons 27.39
11 Titans 27.29
12 Browns 27.18
13 Jets 27.16
13 Broncos 27.16
15 Bears 27.02
16 Cowboys 26.93
17 Bills 26.93
18 Chargers 26.93
19 Texans 26.89
20 Giants 26.88
21 Ravens 26.83
22 Raiders 26.82
23 Eagles 26.81
24 Rams 26.73
25 Jaguars 26.61
26 Bengals 26.60
27 Dolphins 26.47
28 Bucs 26.46
29 Panthers 26.39
30 Chiefs 26.36
31 Colts 26.34
32 Packers 26.16
Posted by ESPN.com's Mike Sando

Chiefs starters:

Cassel is 27
Johnson is 30
Bowe is 25
Chambers is 31
Ryan is 29
Albert is 25
Waters is 32
Niswanger is 27 on Monday
Mike Goff is 33
Ryan O'Callaghan is 26
Wade is 28

Average age of the offense is: 28.45

Defense:

Dorsey is 24
Jackson is 23
Edwards is 30
Vrabel is 34
Mays is 25 (26 in 3 weeks)
Williams is 29
Hali is 26
Brown is 31
McGraw is 30
Flowers is 23
Carr is 23

Average age of the defense is 27.2

Average age of the starters is 27.8.

Now, point me to some guys on the bench (other than possibly Morgan or Charles) who might be able to contribute to a winner in the future.

We aren't nearly as young as you think. In fact, we're significantly older than last year, and the team is every bit as bad. That's phenomenal.

Tiger's Fan · 11-06-2009, 07:21 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by 'Hamas' Jenkins

The typical bullshit response of someone who doesn't have a reply. "Oh you don't work for the NFL."

You know what, there are plenty of dumb mother****ers that work for the NFL, and when Scott Pioli does something to differentiate himself from any of them, then I'll be the first person to give him credit. Until then, he's another ****ing jobber.

And the Patriots team secretary has the same number of rings as Pioli, and one fewer win as GM.

Pioli isn't Belichick. Mangini wasn't Belichick. Crennel wasn't Belichick. Weiss wasn't Belichick. Parcells wasn't Belichick.

When any of those dipshits win anything without him, let me know. Until then, Pioli is just another tagalong.

You're just naturally dense. Not a good thing when combined with being a pathetic whining pussy.

Contrarian · 11-06-2009, 07:31 PM

Damn this is harsh.
What do you expect them to do Hamas? They've almost cleaned the slate of the subpar talent that we had floating around here from the Peterson era that should have never been given a job in the NFL to begin with. Some just didn't fit their system and was told to move on.
There are however some legit players on this team though that they have brought in but not everybody they want wants to play for this team. Being way under the floor financially is the only thing I question of the regime. Spend it now or you'll have to split it among these players at the end of the year like a bonus for failure. I don't agree with that at all.
I have a lot more faith in Pioli and Haley that what you express. I think that opinion is shared by many.

11-06-2009, 12:08 PM
KCDC Starter Join Date: Mar 2009 Casino cash: $9716110	Interview with Belichick Jason Cole of Yahoo Sports had a recent interview with Belichick that touches on judging QBs (using Cassel as an example) and why teams are bad. I thought it might be of some interest here. http://sports.yahoo.com/nfl/news?slu...yhoo&type=lgns It’s 10 p.m. on a Wednesday night and New England Patriots coach Bill Belichick is sitting behind his desk in his rather drab office, featuring a computer in front of him and a steno pad full of notes on the desk. On the windowsill behind him is a package of blank CDs. Compared to most coaches such as the Miami Dolphins’ Tony Sparano, the Atlanta Falcons’ Mike Smith(notes) or even the Kansas City Chiefs’ Todd Haley, Belichick’s office is little more than a closet. But dressed in his Patriots sweats and sporting bare feet, Belichick is very content. Even after three Super Bowl titles, a fourth championship appearance and two titles as a defensive coordinator in 34 years in the NFL, Belichick, 57, doesn’t think about other challenges outside of football. Rather, he grinds away till the wee hours. However, he recently gave up more than an hour of his time to talk about a variety of subjects regarding the Patriots and the NFL, in general: Jason Cole: Earlier this season when your offense was struggling – Wes Welker(notes) and Randy Moss(notes) were hurt and quarterback Tom Brady(notes) was still working his way back in after a year off – you resisted the temptation to completely go back to the type of running game that fueled your title teams earlier this decade. Why? Belichick: I think it’s a question of how you want to use your personnel and where you think your players are … good offensive teams in this league are teams that are more balanced, can throw the ball and have playmakers out on the field. To get in there and run the power 20 times … yeah, it’s OK. It shortens the game and it controls things if that’s what you want to be and if you have a good defense and that’s the way you want to play. But I think we’re capable of doing more than that and it takes our quarterback out of the game. It takes a slot receiver like Wes Welker out of the game and that’s not what we want to do. If you’re trying to not put as much on our quarterback like we were in ’01 and a little bit in ’02, at that point, that was the way to go. And some of that is a function of who your running back is. Some guys are better running behind a fullback, some are better in a 1-back system, just like your passing game is a little bit of a function of who your quarterback is. Cole: A lot of coaches would have resisted the temptation to trade a player like Richard Seymour(notes) because they are all about winning now, this season. You made a very pragmatic move to trade him on the eve of the season. Can you explain how you were able to fight that tendency as a coach? Belichick: We gave up a significant player and we gained a significant asset … you know all the situations surrounding the decision. Cole: Right, but most coaches who sit in your chair think overwhelmingly about today, this week; how am I going to get through this season. Belichick: I think about that, too (laughs). Cole: Yes, but you’re taking a larger-scope view when you make that deal. Belichick: I can’t speak for everybody else. I mean, we’re worried about this year’s team, we’re worried about today, but we’re going to have a schedule next year, too, and we’re going to play football then, too. There’s a balance of this year and years in the future. Do we consider that? Yes, but in the end you look at the level of compensation and you do it. Had it been for another level of compensation, would we do it? Maybe not. I don’t know. There’s a point where you say yes and a point where you say no and there’s a real fine line in the middle where it really depends on how bad you want to make the trade. It’s like anything else, if you really want to do it, you might take less. If you don’t, it probably would take more. Cole: How long did those discussions take? Belichick: We had been talking to them for a number of weeks. Not necessarily about Richard, but about other things like the (Derrick) Burgess trade. That trade was going around since last spring. There were a number of players thrown around. I would say it was probably 24 to 48 hours with Seymour. They brought it up. … Again, who’s available on your team? Really, probably everybody is available at the right price. Cole: So if I gave you six first-round NFL draft picks, Brady might be available? Belichick: Each guy’s price is different. If a team asks, you see what the price is. Now, is Jerod Mayo(notes) available? No, not really. But there are certain players who are young that have a certain number of years left on their contract that you want on your team, so you’re really not going to trade them. Those guys are realistically not available, no. But is everybody else available for a certain price on every team? I would say, for the most part, they probably are. Who’s willing to give that? What you want and what someone else is willing to give, that’s usually very different. In this case (the Seymour trade – in return, the Patriots get Oakland’s first-round pick in the 2011 draft), it worked. Cole: How much longer do you see yourself doing this? Belichick: Right now, I’m just getting ready for (the next game). Cole: So you’re not sure you’re even going to get past Sunday. Belichick: That’s long-term for me (smiles) … four more days. Cole: OK, do you have some idea of what else … Belichick: No, I like what I do and I’m doing it. Cole: You love the mental challenge of it? Belichick: I really do. I like every part of it. The offseason, the in-season, the preparation for games, the young players, the old players … there’s a lot of different aspects to the job and that’s one of the great things about it. You’re not locked into one part, one thing. I can be a part of anything I want to be a part of, so I like that, it’s fun. … Every season presents a multitude of challenges. Cole: Do you do any other things that fill your time? Jimmy Johnson used to love to trade stocks. Belichick: That’s not my thing, but he still does. Competitively, I get it here, so I don’t need to go compete in something else to fulfill that. I have plenty of competition in football. I love competition, but I’m not looking to compete in something else. Cole: So you don’t have to do play racquetball or something else? Belichick: I do that for recreation. I see my kids play and that stuff, but that’s a whole different involvement. It’s more emotional than my involvement with this team, as screwed up as that sounds. But it’s only temporary because it’s not like (my kids) are going to play for that team for all time. But for that particular time, I’m emotionally invested in that, definitely. Absolutely. Cole: Do you scream on the sidelines at your kids’ games? Belichick: I keep it in, but sometimes I’d like to. Cole: My son just started crew and I don’t know anything about it. It’s his deal, so I just keep my mouth shut and cheer him on. Belichick: Yep, look dumb and say “all right.” That’s perfect. Cole: When you’re looking at quarterbacks, what do you examine most? Belichick: One of the things we saw last year with (Matt) Cassel when we put him out there: … You put a guy in there who hasn’t played, the first couple of weeks you wonder if you made the right decision. And then, as they grow in the offense and they control it and it’s their offense and their team, sometimes those players go from here (holds his hand low) to here (holds his hand high) and sometimes they don’t. Sometimes they just muddle along and they never grow. Cassel grew from the San Diego game last year to the Miami game to the San Francisco game. There were a few plays at first and then it was, “Hey, this guy is a legitimate starting NFL quarterback.” The funny thing is that happened after Cassel wasn’t really that great in preseason. He was OK, but nothing like what we saw in the season. It changed when he took all the walkthroughs. He was the guy in the meetings, he took all the reps in practice, he was the guy with the game plan, he was the guy saying, “Hey, I don’t like this route, I like this.” He had the input and it was catered to him, just like how Brady says, “I don’t like that play.” OK, we’ve got plenty of other plays. But that might be a play that Cassel likes running, but he doesn’t say anything because he’s not the quarterback at the time. When he became the quarterback, he started talking about it and saying what he liked. I think all quarterbacks go through that. So where they are now and where they are going to be, as they grow into it and the coaches figure out who they are, sometimes the only way you find out is to actually let them do it. Cole: Yeah, but you actively are looking for that answer in advance of just doing it. Belichick: Yeah, but you never really know until you get them in there. Yeah, this guy can read this and he can do that, he can handle this type of situation and play. Then you get them out there and you find out that he may not do that, but he’s pretty good at this other stuff and you do more of that. If he’s got a good release on the deep ball, throw more deep balls. If he’s not good on the deep ball, but he’s good on the run, do that. As long as the guy is a good decision-maker and he’s accurate and he’s consistent, you can give him something you can count on and you have a pretty good chance. The hard part is when they’re inconsistent or they’re not very accurate or they don’t make good decisions because ultimately you’re going to need a throw, they’re going to miss it; you’re going to need a decision, they’re not going to make it and that’s when it comes apart. Cole: So accuracy and decision-making are the most important things? Belichick: For me, yeah. Cole: Can you even distinguish between the two? Belichick: What’s one without the other? If you make the wrong decision, you’ve got problems, and if you can’t throw the ball, even if you make the right decision, you’ve got problems. So if you’ve got those two, you’ve got Joe Montana. If you can’t do one of those two, then what’s the future? … If you have those two things, you have a quarterback. If you don’t have those two things, you’re going to have to dumb it down. You’re either going to have to limit the decisions he makes or take the accuracy element out of it by either not throwing over 10 yards or not throwing outside the numbers. You’re going to have to do something that changes the way you play offense. Cole: Why are there so many bad teams around the league this year? Belichick: Here’s the only thing I’ll say: I think to have a really good team in this league, you have to make a lot, a lot of good decisions. You have to have a lot of good people, players, coaches, whatever. You need a lot of those. Conversely, to not be competitive, you would have to have a lot of bad decisions. One bad decision is not going to do it, one bad player is not going to do it, one bad coach is not going to do it. You’re going to have to collectively, over a cumulative period of time, make a long series of bad decisions and accumulate a lot of players who are substandard for their position. There have to be a multitude of things that go wrong. Cole: Because you can keep yourself average for a long time? Belichick: That’s the system. If you don’t have good players, you have money to spend on players. If you have a bunch of good players, you eventually run out of money and you can’t keep them all and somebody else gets them. That’s the system, it keeps everybody average. We’ve seen teams be really good just on coaching. We’ve seen teams be competitive with just a few good players. Cole: Jimmy Johnson once said, if you don’t take too many risks, you can win nine or 10 games a year. Belichick: Jimmy probably said the same thing to you that he once said to me: “You’re really only competing with about 10 teams a year. If you just say out of the way, the other 20 teams will screw it up themselves. Whether it’s ownership or personnel or coaching or some combination of factors.” Ego, internal struggle, something will happen to two-thirds of the teams, that was Jimmy’s theory. That leaves you with about 10 teams that you’re going to have to really battle with. Those teams have it together. They’re going to make good decisions and if you play bad football, they’re going to take advantage of it. They’re going to find some undrafted guy or some middle-round pick or some veteran free agent who is going to spark their team. Pittsburgh is always going to be there. Indianapolis is always going to be there. They may not win it, but they’ll be there. You’re going to have to beat them. Philadelphia is going to be there. Yeah, [quarterback Donovan] McNabb might get hurt one year and they might go 7-9, but they’re going to be there. You’re still battling them on every front. Last edited by KCDC; 11-06-2009 at 01:01 PM..
Posts: 876

11-06-2009, 01:12 PM	#16
Hoover Rufus Dawes Jr. Join Date: Aug 2000 Casino cash: $1278179	And here is why the Chiefs suck ass Belichick: Here’s the only thing I’ll say: I think to have a really good team in this league, you have to make a lot, a lot of good decisions. You have to have a lot of good people, players, coaches, whatever. You need a lot of those. Conversely, to not be competitive, you would have to have a lot of bad decisions. One bad decision is not going to do it, one bad player is not going to do it, one bad coach is not going to do it. You’re going to have to collectively, over a cumulative period of time, make a long series of bad decisions and accumulate a lot of players who are substandard for their position. There have to be a multitude of things that go wrong.
Posts: 17,391

11-06-2009, 03:04 PM	#20
Amnorix In BB I trust Join Date: May 2003 Location: Boston, Mass. Casino cash: $10029808	At what point are you guys, collectively, going to accept that it takes more than one year to turn around the complete disaster that is the late 2000 Chiefs? As BB said, it takes years of suck, in a number of areas, to get to the serious levels of suck that the Chiefs find themselves in now. And it takes more than one year to fix all that suck. Last edited by Amnorix; 11-06-2009 at 03:12 PM..
Posts: 43,125

11-06-2009, 03:27 PM	#23
Amnorix In BB I trust Join Date: May 2003 Location: Boston, Mass. Casino cash: $10029808	Phrase differently: What Pioli has -- hardware: What you have: hot air:
Posts: 43,125

11-06-2009, 03:50 PM	#24
Tiger's Fan Veteran Join Date: Sep 2007 Location: Ks Casino cash: $10004900	What the **** does Belichick know/hamas __________________ Rock Chalk! The San Diego SuperChokers! DaneMcCloud: where cowardice meets dishonesty
Posts: 1,832

11-06-2009, 04:38 PM	#26
DaWolf Cry havoc... Join Date: Aug 2000 Casino cash: $10007725	Well this is the same coach who took over an 8-8 Pats team and proceeded to go 5-11 with them in 2000. Pretty sure they signed some vets then too and they lacked a first round pick in the draft that year as well, since they traded it for the coach. People were cursing the guy at the time...
Posts: 6,798

11-06-2009, 07:31 PM	#30
Contrarian Starter Join Date: Apr 2009 Location: Seattle, WA Casino cash: $10012872	Damn this is harsh. What do you expect them to do Hamas? They've almost cleaned the slate of the subpar talent that we had floating around here from the Peterson era that should have never been given a job in the NFL to begin with. Some just didn't fit their system and was told to move on. There are however some legit players on this team though that they have brought in but not everybody they want wants to play for this team. Being way under the floor financially is the only thing I question of the regime. Spend it now or you'll have to split it among these players at the end of the year like a bonus for failure. I don't agree with that at all. I have a lot more faith in Pioli and Haley that what you express. I think that opinion is shared by many.
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