Where does Belichick rank?

I think he was the GOAT before this, but this certainly makes it easier to back up. Looking back at his early success he always seemed like the difference more than his players did. I'm still baffled by those losses to the just pretty good Giants teams which are major holes in his resume.

 

Mostly inability to pass block. Hard to scheme away that failure. Giants just a tough matchup for them, like the Ravens are.

 

There's also the intangible factor with Belichick. He's a mysterious dude, a grinder but one who has carte blanche in the organization.

What also helps him is that, as far as NFL coaches go, he is untouchable as far as ownership goes. He's able to take chances on guys who other coaches wouldn't take in because they're worried about a "coach killer" entering the locker room.

 

That power is a benefit for most players. They know they have to make one guy happy and only one. Keeps things simpler than say if you're working for the 49ers.

 

Agree.
I remember after the Cowboys run, sportswriters coast to coast were saying the days of the dynasties were over due to free agency.


And I'll add this:
How many HOF'ers did Walsh have? Six, eight, 10, including the greatest possession receiver of all time. The same with Lombardi.
How many HOF'ers will Belichick have had? Honestly, no running back stands out. Maybe, maybe one receiver (Moss doesn't count). I think several OL men get the call and a few defenders, like Harrison, but by and large the Pats were a dynasty by committee.
And that's pretty impressive.

 

I think you're overestimating it. After Brady, Gronkowski needs to keep it up for a long time, then it's a bunch of maybes (Law, Harrison, Woolfork) and rentals (Moss, Revis). He and Brady are the constants, and it's in the eye of the beholder which is the dominant partner. To me, having watched the first run when Brady was kind of like Roethlesberger and Eli , the first time so I think it's Belichek.

 

It's amazing that so many people think Bill Belichick is the greatest coach ever but can't spell his name.

 

If we're talking Hall of Famers from this Patriots' run (Which I think is fascinating btw), I'd go:

FIRST-BALLOT LOCKS: Brady and Belichick.
Strong contenders: Vinatieri, Harrison, Law
Potential contenders: Wilfork, Bruschi, Gronk
Rentals: Moss, Revis, Seau.

 

Walsh's 49ers only have four Hall of Famers, Montana, Rice, Lott and now Haley. It's five if you count Young.

 

If Gronkowski can put in another four healthy seasons -- huge IF -- he's a lock.

 

The Patriots have had a huge number of really good players, obviously, but Gronk is the only one who's at or close to Brady's level at his own position.

 

Belichick is one of the all time greats because of how good of a tactician he is and how he got his teams prepared. Just look at this playoff run where the Patriots attacked all three teams with different schemes (pun mildly intended). He and his staff figured out what teams' strengths are and how best to attack them (or in the case of Sherman, not attack) and what their weaknesses are and how best to exploit them. Having Tom Brady is a very big piece to the success, too, but he put his teams in the best positions to win.

Where I think Walsh may one up him is the fact Walsh (and please someone correct me on this if I'm wrong because I'm not old enough to actually remember football from the 80s) made the innovation of the West Coast Offense. I don't think Belichick was as innovative with offenses except that he knew how to use formations to best suit his needs. The spread wasn't exactly Hoody's brain child but damn he knows how to use it.

All that said, Spygate is the elephant in the room. He's not going to erase the stain of being called a cheater with what anything he's accomplished to date. If Deflategate turns out to be something more than some rogue ball boy got over zealous preparing the balls, it's going to hurt Belichick's legacy that much more. The mere accusation hurts, but if he is found to have known something (and at this point, I don't think the NFL is going to say anything substantial with its investigation) that will be his second serious offense and there will always be that asterisk next to his name.