New England’s head coach Bill Belichick is known to be the “Mastermind” behind the success of the Patriots, but he had to overcome a lot of hardships to become the coach that he is today.
How it began
His first coaching gig was given to him by the Baltimore Colts in 1976. After he got some experience with the Colts and Detroit Lions, he went on to coach special teams for the Denver Broncos.
In 1979, Belichick was awarded a position with the New York Giants and stayed with the team for 12 years. During his time with the Giants, he worked under Ray Perkins and Bill Parcells. Belichick improved the Giants’ defense and was named defensive coordinator in 1985. With Parcells and Belichick’s’ intense plan on improving the Giants, the Giants won two Super Bowls.
Despite their success in New York, the team parted ways with Belichick. Belichick got his first shot at being a head coach with the Cleveland Browns. He turned the franchise around and in 1994 the Browns had their first successful season and beat New England in the playoffs. Despite the one-year success, the browns did not do well the next year and ended the season with a 5-11 record.
With the Browns, he finished with a 36-44 record. He was fired after the Browns’ organization told him that he would still keep his job. He ended up with the Patriots. The Patriots kept him for one season, but he was released after an 11-5 record.
The Turning Point
He was awarded a position with the Jets and reunited with Bill Parcells for two years. After Parcells stepped down and he told individuals that he wanted Belichick to be the coach. Belichick declined the offer.He went back to the New England Patriots and have become the talk of the town.
Belichick has overcome many obstacles to get to this point. From people, that didn’t take him serious to now becoming one of the greatest coaches in NFL history. Under Belichick, the Patriots have a 209-78 winning record. They are always the “dangerous” team in the playoffs. This year New England has clinched its eighth consecutive divisional title and have a chance to make another Super Bowl appearance.
The moral of Belichick’s story is to keep believing, learning, and understand that if you want something, you have to take the bumps and the bruises to achieve greatness.
