New England Patriots’ legendary coach Bill Belichick has named the three players he considers to be the greatest to ever play in the NFL.
And, understandably considering his highly successful career and some of the famed teams and players he’s coached during it, the three stars in question have all made their names under him.
“I’ve been very fortunate,” Belichick told The 33rd Team. “I feel like I coached the best offensive player, the best player in football in Tom [Brady], the best defensive player in football in L.T. [Lawrence Taylor] and the best special teams player in football in Matt Slater.”
Belichick also gave a nod to some of the other players he’s coached during his career, such as punter Sean Landeta, who was named in the NFL’s 1980s All-Decade Team, and placekicker Adam Vinatieri, who won the Super Bowl four times in a career that saw him play for the Patriots and the Indiana Colts.
“When you have the opportunity to coach players that are great in areas, and that of course includes the specialists, guys like Adam Vinatieri and [Stephen] Gostkowski, you don’t want to take anything away from them, either. And great punters like [Sean] Landeta and [Dave] Jennings and so forth.”
Who is Bill Belichick?
Bill Belichick is one of the greatest coaches in American Football history. Only Vince Lombardi, who won five NFL Championships in seven years during his time with the Green Bay Packers through the 1960s, can come close to Belichick’s incredible record.
His coaching career began in 1975 with the Baltimore Colts. After spells at the Detroit Lions and Denver Broncos, he joined the New York Giants in 1979, eventually being named defensive coordinator in 1985.
Working closely with head coach Bill Parcells, Belichick won the first of his Super Bowl titles during this period, as the Giants beat the Denver Broncos in 1986 and the Buffalo Bills in 1990.
A move to the Cleveland Browns as head coach followed in 1991, but it was a rare misfire for Belichick, and his tenure with the team ended poorly: he was fired in 1995 following an underwhelming season marred by off-field controversy surrounding the team’s mooted relocation.
Belichick and the Patriots
It’s been at the Patriots, where he is still Head Coach, that he’s made his name after joining the franchise in the year 2000.
Backed by an incredible team featuring major stars like Brady, he won the Super Bowl three times between 2001 and 2004. He also led them to a perfect season in 2007, as they finished the regular campaign without defeat – the first franchise to do so since the legendary Miami Dolphins team of 1972. Only an incredible upset by the New York Giants denied them victory in the Super Bowl.
Belichick has won football’s ultimate prize a total of eight times, with the most recent being in 2019, when the Patriots beat the Los Angeles Rams 13-3. He was named coach of the All-Decade Team for the 2000s and the 2010s. As one of the most respected men in the NFL, when Belichick talks, everyone listens.
Written and distributed by Chat T Sports.
