Brady and Belichick. Never “Brady or Belichick.”
The success of the Patriots dynasty will forever be accredited to the inseparable duo. The spoiled Boston fan base has never had to choose between the dominate player-coach tandem, because frankly, how could you?
The storm of Deflategate pushed Brady out of Gillette Stadium for four weeks, making Belichick alone in the spotlight. More importantly, an interesting debate has arisen: who would you rather have, Brady or Belichick? The answer is ideally both.
Their paired longevity has made their six Super Bowl trips in the last 16 years a reality.
On Sunday night in the hot desert of Glendale, Arizona, Belichick orchestrated a fourth-quarter comeback with Tom Brady sitting at home nearly 3,000 miles away. Jimmy Garoppolo, the third-year man out of Eastern Illinois University, made his first career start and was nothing short of brilliant.
The youngster completed 24 of 33 passes for 264 yards, a touchdown and no turnovers. More importantly, he led the team to 10 crucial third-down conversions, three of which sparked the 13-play game-winning drive late in the fourth quarter.
Belichick critics questioned Garoppolo’s readiness for the season opener in a hostile environment against the elite Arizona Cardinals defense. The week 1 starter lost precious reps in the all-important third preseason game and finished training camp as a looming question mark.
Garoppolo looked like a rookie this preseason, but a Bill Belichick quarterback on Sunday night.
Under the national spotlight, Garoppolo silenced doubters in the 23-21 victory, but it was a rare Bill Belichick smile that caught my eye. Rarely does the smug Belichick show emotion, but the faint yet powerful smile hinted at a big sigh of relief. And it should.
This win is more a testament to Belichick’s system than it is one great performance by an inexperienced quarterback. One game in the month of September is by no means the defining moment for Belichick’s coaching career, but he continues to prove in limited opportunities that he does not need Brady to succeed.
Naysayers to Belichick’s standalone value will point to his record without Brady under center. In Belichick’s 22nd year as a head coach, he is only 53-63 without Brady and 194-60 with the future Hall of Famer. You could do this for countless successful coaches in the NFL because the league is quarterback-driven, but that doesn’t devalue the importance of a top-notch coach. Furthermore, 44 of those losses came in his first coaching stint with the lowly Cleveland Browns.
The perfectly-oiled machine in New England is incredibly hard to question. Since 2001, Belichick is now 11-5 without Brady starting, after Sunday night’s 23-21 win. A season-ending injury for Brady in 2008 rushed a young Matt Cassel into the starting spot, when he led the Patriots to a double-digit win season.
Everyone assumed Cassel was the real deal, and since then, the journeyman has seen more time on the bench than on the field. The Patriots missed the playoffs at 11-5 that year and as a result Belichick doesn’t get the credit he deserved. Since heading for Kansas City in 2009, Cassel is now known for his wayward decision making and inaccuracy.
Belichick has undoubtedly mastered the winning formula in the NFL. Brady’s value to this franchise is obviously immeasurable, but to question Belichick’s ability to win a few games in September without Brady seems unwarranted.
In Belichick’s tenure, their hallmark is big third-down conversions and comeback victories. Garoppolo had no problem stepping in and making some big-time throws to orchestrate a beautiful game-winning drive, which was highlighted by a great third-and-long strike to Danny Amendola.
Garoppolo surely looked the part last night as ship captain, but he sounded the part as well. After winning his first career start, Garoppolo handled the media the Patriot way, deflecting any personal accomplishments.
The Patriots looked in midseason form last night without Brady and tight end Rob Gronkowski on the road against one of the top contenders in the league. Despite all the drama this summer over Garoppolo’s readiness, the Patriots are now primed to go 4-0 without Brady. This is by no means a knock on arguably the greatest quarterback of all time, because if Belichick were suspended for four games instead of Brady, there wouldn’t be a big dip in production over a short stint either.
This duo is downright special and the NFL may never see a better tandem. At this point in their careers, the ship is battle tested and strong enough to steer itself without their captain at the helm for three more games.
