Originally Posted by Deus Irae

And yet, miraculously, he was able to play at a pro bowl level again later in his career.

Originally Posted by AndyJohnson

Those who paid close attention to what he did with the hand he was dealt in 2000 did.
My first assessment that BB was the right man for the job was late in 2000 when it became clear to me that the 2000 season was about finding out who on the roster could play the way he needed them to in order to win Championships rather than using the talents that were on the roster to win the most games that year.
I have absolutely no doubt that BB could have run a 650 pass offense, and an aggressive blitzing defense and gone 8-8 that year. Instead he followed the blueprint of the kind of team he felt cold win a Championship, accepted the results, and assessed what he had.
Did I expect a SB title in 2001 before the season? No. But I was VERY confident things were going in the right direction and there would be one in the future.

Originally Posted by Wolfpack

He also played at the Pro Bowl level while he was a Patriot. But that doesn't mean he could have fueled the turnaround we saw once a man Tom Brady (someone whom I'm not entirely sure you've ever heard of) took over under center.

Originally Posted by Wolfpack

That's all well and good and it very much echoes how I felt at the time. I'm just saying that the statement that "Everyone including Kraft felt Belichick was worth the 1st round pick in trade ... I didn't encounter one fan who was writing off Belichick and the Patriots after one season" is simply a load of crap.

I was in the pro-Belichick camp and there were many times not only I had to argue his case, but also felt very much like the minority amongst Patriots fans.