The third Patriots Super Bowl win in four years demonstrates Bill Belichick’s ’75 status as one of the greatest NFL coaches of all time. Belichick is coaching in an era of free agency and salary caps, making it difficult to keep together winning teams for any prolonged period of time. The Patriots have lost a few players in his tenure, but their ability to keep most key players stems from the team’s cohesion and lack of superstars and superegos. The Patriots have no star wide receiver—just a collection of very solid guy—and they didn’t have a star running back until Corey Dillon joined them this year. They also had an injury-plagued, makeshift defense, which at times saw players out of their natural positions. Belichick trained his players to be versatile, helping the team to thrive in any position they were put in.
Tom Brady is a great quarterback; however statistically speaking, Peyton Manning of the Colts had a better season in 2004, arguably the best season for a quarterback ever. He threw 49 touchdown passes for an NFL record and had several superstar receivers as targets, yet Belichick’s defensive scheme held the Colts to just a field goal in the Divisional playoff game. In the AFC championship the following weekend, Belichick’s offense scored 41 points against a dominant Steelers’ defense, humbling a team that had lost only once all year before New England picked them apart.
This year was very much the same as the other two championship seasons for the Patriots, as New England beat Manning’s Colts last year as well, and three years ago, the Patriots surprisingly dismantled the heavily favored, offensively powerful Rams in the Super Bowl.
Back in the days of Vince Lombardi, there weren’t as many professional teams, there weren’t as many regular season or playoff games, and salary caps were not an issue. After his third Super Bowl victory in four years, Belichick has joined the ranks of great coaches like Vince Lombardi. Belichick can make adjustments, foster team unity, contain the best players, an—most importantl—win Super Bowls.
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