Bill Belichick

I heard "coach" from Pittsburg interview Bill Belichick before the New England San Diego game.  I always wondered what kind of guy he is, he looks like Obi-Wan Kenobe with his hood on the sidelines in bad weather.

"Belichick is considered one of the best coaches in NFL history, Bill Belichick was born William Stephen Belichick on April 16, 1952, in Nashville, Tennessee. The only child of Steve and Jeannette Belichick, Bill showed an early aptitude for the game of football, a trait he no doubt inherited from his father, a longtime assistant coach and college football scout.

Belichick studied how his father dissected game film and drew up plays, and often accompanied him to coaches meetings. By his early teens, Belichick was a regular part of the team's practices, and was well-versed in the game's schemes and formations.

After graduating from Phillips Academy in Andover, Massachusetts, Belichick enrolled at Wesleyan University in Middletown, Connecticut, where he played lacrosse and finished with an undergraduate degree in economics.

Following his graduation from Wesleyan in 1975, Belichick took a job with the Baltimore Colts for $25 a week, serving as a sort of gopher for head coach Ted Marchibroda. From there, Belichick hooked on with a number of NFL teams, including the Detroit Lions and Denver Broncos, as he attempted to climb the league's coaching ladder.

In 1979, Belichick was hired by the New York Giants to coach the team's special teams unit. Belichick ended up staying with the club for 12 seasons, eventually taking over as defensive coordinator under head coach Bill Parcells, who steered the franchise to a pair of Super Bowl victories."

I was really impressed with what I heard.  Two good coaches were talking about their passion for football with all of its rewards and disappointments.  I would want either one in charge of my team but I would pick Belichick first.

Every human being has mistakes from the past and Bill's is not a small one.  In 2007, it came to light that the Patriots had, over several years, secretly video-taped opposing coaches in order to learn their play-calling signals. The incident, which came to be known as Spygate, resulted in Belichick being fined $500,000 by the league. The Patriots were fined an additional $250,000 and lost a first-round pick in the 2008

Still, Belichick is a winner to me.

Ed Winkle