Belichick needs to go to charm school [merged]

[DropKick Flutie]

Let's face it, for a franchise that has less arrest, drug problems and dancing clowns than most, we get a lot of crap.

And crap is a....distraction. With the great undefeated run, we did not need more pressure, but we sure had it.

Did it affect our play, freshness, fatigue in the SB? I think it's seriously debatable.

BB is the greatest coach but he makes no effort to do the public relations part of his job.

It's entertainment. Lots of reporters need their notebooks filled. If you don't give them something and look at them like they are moron's, they'll make something up and it won't be good.

BB's a smart guy. His attitude helped torpedo him in Cleveland and it's doing the same here. Whatever his problem is, he needs to get over it.

This is entertainment. Reporters, Morons though they may be, have a job to do.

I hate to be blunt, but he's hurting the team.

You're right...great post. As great people think BB is as a coach, public relations is part of the job. Really... charm school would help his cause. If he was less of a **** people wouldn't go after him as much.

 

[RayClay]

I'm not sure how it's a "problem".

Should he just gush at the opportunity to talk to Felger, Tomase and Borges?

Are you calling Belichick "stupid", because we know he has no personality (at least towards the media).

He should have a strategy to feed them something. Otherwise, the constant negative drumbeat will go on and on.

I think BB has a great personality, that's what's so frustrating. The PBJ video is really funny. He's stubborn and that's up to him except when it starts to hurt the team.

I actually have very high standards for him because i think so much of him. I think we could win even more, possibly with less distractions bu handling required media relations.

Do you think ignoring the press has decreased negative coverage and distractions? I don't.

 

[MoLewisrocks]

They won 18 games in a row and lost the lead in the SB with 35 seconds left. The negative media was an ispiration when we blew teams out 52-7 and 56-10, now it was our downfall in a tight game we could have won?

BB doesn't need charm school. He and this team feeds off the negativity. This team needs a chip on their shoulder and now they've got one.

As a fan I am totally looking forward to next season. We will never have a Patriots team as good as they are now (and have been).

This is a Golden Age, even with a media un-savvy coach like Belichick.

Quit complaining and enjoy it.

Amazing, isn't it...

Bill's predecessor was a peach of a guy - media evisverated him as a wimpy doormat. Guy before that had a character the media adored, and he stabbed the franchise in the back on his way out of town in a move some claimed distracted his team out of a SB...

I'll take Bill any day over some of the disingenuous, ass-kissing, finger pointing, bible thumping, sound bite generating huggers who wilt under the first hint of criticism any day. So will Brady. As he recently said, he doesn't want a coach who blows smoke up his ass...he wants a coach to put him in the best position to win no matter how much that pisses off his competitors or the mediots. Bill did that again this year, much o his critics chagrin, only his players had a bad evening and for the first time in 20 weeks the other team barely had a better one.

We haven't won a Superbowl in 3 years...LOL We've only played in 4 of the last 7 and won 3 of them. Before that we hadn't won one in...42 years, or as Junior might have described it, EVER. Amazing, isn't it...

 

[OhExaulted1]

He should have a strategy to feed them something. Otherwise, the constant negative drumbeat will go on and on.

I think BB has a great personality, that's what's so frustrating. The PBJ video is really funny. He's stubborn and that's up to him except when it starts to hurt the team.

I actually have very high standards for him because i think so much of him. I think we could win even more, possibly with less distractions bu handling required media relations.

Do you think ignoring the press has decreased negative coverage and distractions? I don't.

For the first 18 games it was ammunition. I'm hoping it's ammo for 19 games in 2008.

BB does have a great personality, but like you said the media needs to sell it's product. Right now Belichick is a reviled (outside NE) public figure and that's the story that sells. It's to late for damage control. Bad-ell took care of that.

I would rather deal with a jealous media that feels left out than one that considers us an afterthought like the way the other 31 teams are now veiwed.

What are the odds of the Giants defending their title next year? Not great. What are the odds on NE? I'm not betting against them, lame press-conference coach and all.

 

[OhExaulted1]

Amazing, isn't it...

Bill's predecessor was a peach of a guy - media evisverated him as a wimpy doormat. Guy before that had a character the media adored, and he stabbed the franchise in the back on his way out of town in a move some claimed distracted his team out of a SB...

I'll take Bill any day over some of the disingenuous, ass-kissing, finger pointing, bible thumping, sound bite generating huggers who wilt under the first hint of criticism any day. So will Brady. As he recently said, he doesn't want a coach who blows smoke up his ass...he wants a coach to put him in the best position to win no matter how much that pisses off his competitors or the mediots. Bill did that again this year, much o his critics chagrin, only his players had a bad evening and for the first time in 20 weeks the other team barely had a better one.

We haven't won a Superbowl in 3 years...LOL We've only played in 4 of the last 7 and won 3 of them. Before that we hadn't won one in...42 years, or as Junior might have described it, EVER. Amazing, isn't it...

Bingo, you get it. Enjoy the ride with the quirky crazy scientist. The media doesn't understand him but us fans do. It's all about the won-loss record.

We win alot and it's fun to watch.

 

[RayClay]

Amazing, isn't it...

Bill's predecessor was a peach of a guy - media evisverated him as a wimpy doormat. Guy before that had a character the media adored, and he stabbed the franchise in the back on his way out of town in a move some claimed distracted his team out of a SB...

I'll take Bill any day over some of the disingenuous, ass-kissing, finger pointing, bible thumping, sound bite generating huggers who wilt under the first hint of criticism any day. So will Brady. As he recently said, he doesn't want a coach who blows smoke up his ass...he wants a coach to put him in the best position to win no matter how much that pisses off his competitors or the mediots. Bill did that again this year, much o his critics chagrin, only his players had a bad evening and for the first time in 20 weeks the other team barely had a better one.

We haven't won a Superbowl in 3 years...LOL We've only played in 4 of the last 7 and won 3 of them. Before that we hadn't won one in...42 years, or as Junior might have described it, EVER. Amazing, isn't it...

The media in this town sucks. Do you let them constantly dog you, (I invite you to read any paper, magazine or website, did we really win all 18 games?) or do you come up with a strategy to handle it.

The refs are human too. Are we going to have to fight bad calls constantly because mediots like Casserly play up bull****. That was a real nice job he did on Randy Moss who got called for O pass interference more than once instead of getting the call.

I'd like to win some Super Bowls in the future. We need few adjustments on the team. Do we have to win despite the commissioner, refs and public too?

If it were me, I'd fight back and handle the bastards.

We're being crucified for the sin of doing things the right way.

 

[RayClay]

For the first 18 games it was ammunition. I'm hoping it's ammo for 19 games in 2008.

BB does have a great personality, but like you said the media needs to sell it's product. Right now Belichick is a reviled (outside NE) public figure and that's the story that sells. It's to late for damage control. Bad-ell took care of that.

I would rather deal with a jealous media that feels left out than one that considers us an afterthought like the way the other 31 teams are now veiwed.

What are the odds of the Giants defending their title next year? Not great. What are the odds on NE? I'm not betting against them, lame press-conference coach and all.

I'm not one that cares about the first 18 games. I wish we had saved some of that emotion.

Belichick is great, I love him. It's just not necessary to have to fight off this bull, and he's plenty smart and charming enough to handleit.

 

[Koma]

Just the thoughts of noob on this topic:

Could it be too late for Belichick to change his approach with the media?

If he tries to be more friendly and forthcoming with them, isn't it possible that the press will turn around and portray this as a "surrender" by Belichick. I could see some members of the press claiming this wasn't a genuine change, but a transparent ploy to avoid criticism. Then we'd get to read about Bill's "fake" laugh and "forced humor."

It's an interesting idea and a change of tactics with the press could help, but there's a chance it could backfire as well.

 

[OhExaulted1]

I'm not one that cares about the first 18 games. I wish we had saved some of that emotion.

Belichick is great, I love him. It's just not necessary to have to fight off this bull, and he's plenty smart and charming enough to handleit.

So you only watch the Superbowl and don't pay any attention to the first 20 weeks of the season. Interesting.

Did you ever consider the fact that Belichick ENJOYS sparring with the media? He feeds off it and gets his team to also. You really have to ask yourself:

Who's manipulating who? Who's really in control? Is the media in control of our coach, or is he controlling the media?

From what I know the Kraft family, Bill Belichick and Scott Pioli run the Patriots orginization. The media feeds off their scraps.

Why do you hate Belichick and love the bloviating windbags in the media so much?

 

[RayClay]

Just the thoughts of noob on this topic:

Could it be too late for Belichick to change his approach with the media?

If he tries to be more friendly and forthcoming with them, isn't it possible that the press will turn around and portray this as a "surrender" by Belichick. I could see some members of the press claiming this wasn't a genuine change, but a transparent ploy to avoid criticism. Then we'd get to read about Bill's "fake" laugh and "forced humor."

It's an interesting idea and a change of tactics with the press could help, but there's a chance it could backfire as well.

He doesn't have to be friendly, just entertaining or informative.

Mo brought up Parcells, one of the most unscrupulous pricks in the world, in a way.

He growled at the press and they loved it. You never saw him dogged by a media story (except insane T.O. and he was stuck with that.

If Parcells had fired Mangini and he tried to pull that spygate crap, I bet it never even develops. At the most a slap on the wrist.

 

[Deus Irae]

Let's face it, for a franchise that has less arrest, drug problems and dancing clowns than most, we get a lot of crap.

And crap is a....distraction. With the great undefeated run, we did not need more pressure, but we sure had it.

Did it affect our play, freshness, fatigue in the SB? I think it's seriously debatable.

BB is the greatest coach but he makes no effort to do the public relations part of his job.

It's entertainment. Lots of reporters need their notebooks filled. If you don't give them something and look at them like they are moron's, they'll make something up and it won't be good.

BB's a smart guy. His attitude helped torpedo him in Cleveland and it's doing the same here. Whatever his problem is, he needs to get over it.

This is entertainment. Reporters, Morons though they may be, have a job to do.

I hate to be blunt, but he's hurting the team.

Having a pleasant relationship with the media didn't keep McCain from getting ambushed by a contrived attack story in the NYT, did it? The media, be it sports, politics or most anything else, has its own agenda, and 'friends' don't matter compared to the agenda.

The media wanted to tear down New England because New England was Goliath. It's what they do. They create a hero and then pull him down. They found a story to sink the claws into and hyped it out of all proportion to what it should have been, aided by the actions of the most incompetent commissioner I've ever seen. Belichick could perform fellatio on each and every mediot, and they'd still be trying to tear the team down.

 

[RayClay]

Having a pleasant relationship with the media didn't keep McCain from getting ambushed by a contrived attack story in the NYT, did it? The media, be it sports, politics or most anything else, has its own agenda, and 'friends' don't matter compared to the agenda.

The media wanted to tear down New England because New England was Goliath. It's what they do. They create a hero and then pull him down. They found a story to sink the claws into and hyped it out of all proportion to what it should have been, aided by the actions of the most incompetent commissioner I've ever seen. Belichick could perform fellatio on each and every mediot, and they'd still be trying to tear the team down.

Yeah. I guess McCain will just let that dog him through the campaign

 

[HSanders]

Why not throw them a little entertainment bone. It really is part of the job and the major concern Kraft had when he hired BB, from what i understand.

IIRC, I read something Kraft said awhile back about his NOT being concerned about the media aspect, he hired BB to coach the team not to give pressers.
BTW, didn't you notice how lighthearted he was with the media when they arrived at the SB? He was playing Marco Polo with some reporter even. I thought he had been kidnapped and replaced by an alien! He is funny, etc when he is on talk shows and even that WEEI show too. It is just those pressers and the local media and the topic of the CURRENT PATRIOTS he acts like that about. Even other local guys have commented how when they talk to him about non Pats football stuff he will talk forever about it, like historical NFL things. It's plain and simple, competitive advantage strategy, IMO.

 

[Deus Irae]

Yeah. I guess McCain will just let that dog him through the campaign

What McCain "lets" happen means nothing. Dungy is a saint, whether he is or not. Bobby Knight is terrible despite most of his players showing an amazing devotion to him. The media paints pictures, and reality is unimportant. Fortunately, most people are figuring that out, which is why tv and print news is dying. Sadly, it's not dying fast enough.

 

[RayClay]

IIRC, I read something Kraft said awhile back about his NOT being concerned about the media aspect, he hired BB to coach the team not to give pressers.
BTW, didn't you notice how lighthearted he was with the media when they arrived at the SB? He was playing Marco Polo with some reporter even. I thought he had been kidnapped and replaced by an alien! He is funny, etc when he is on talk shows and even that WEEI show too. It is just those pressers and the local media and the topic of the CURRENT PATRIOTS he acts like that about. Even other local guys have commented how when they talk to him about non Pats football stuff he will talk forever about it, like historical NFL things. It's plain and simple, competitive advantage strategy, IMO.

It's to our advantage to have a minor rules violation dominate the media focus even while we go undefeated in the season and after we lose the Super Bowl?

How's that?

Kraft was concerned about BB's personal and media relations at Cleveland.

Of course he said he's only concerned about football this year, what else was he going to say?

 

[RayClay]

What McCain "lets" happen means nothing. Dungy is a saint, whether he is or not. Bobby Knight is terrible despite most of his players showing an amazing devotion to him. The media paints pictures, and reality is unimportant. Fortunately, most people are figuring that out, which is why tv and print news is dying. Sadly, it's not dying fast enough.

Some people feel powerless and some manage situations. Isn't it funny how some people skate for serious indiscretions while others are fried for minor one's.

Being proactive, I would study the teflon ones to see what they know that I don't.

 

[Deus Irae]

Some people feel powerless and some manage situations. Isn't it funny how some people skate for serious indiscretions while others are fried for minor one's.

Being proactive, I would study the teflon ones to see what they know that I don't.

Study all you want. It won't make a difference. As the Clintons and McCain are finding out now, nobody is teflon if they run counter to the agenda. The Patriots have found that out too. Even Mark McGuire found this out the hard way.

 

[HSanders]

It's to our advantage to have a minor rules violation dominate the media focus even while we go undefeated in the season and after we lose the Super Bowl?

How's that?

Kraft was concerned about BB's personal and media relations at Cleveland.

Of course he said he's only concerned about football this year, what else was he going to say?

It wasn't a quote from this year...I wish I could remember where I read it. It was about when he was first hired for the Pats HC job.
It would have dominated the media regardless of what BB said or didn't say, don't you think? The "advantage" part comes in by his not saying anything specific (Is this what you want him to do, give more info, or are you more referring to his demeanor as a whole?), it helps the focus of the team, they aren't having to respond to any quote he says because he gives the media nothing to run with. He did tell Curran in an article a month or so ago words to the effect of if everything were known about the situation it would probably change people's perception. To me that implies that his reason for NOT saying anything is because it would implicate other teams or something like that.

 

[RayClay]

It wasn't a quote from this year...I wish I could remember where I read it. It was about when he was first hired for the Pats HC job.
It would have dominated the media regardless of what BB said or didn't say, don't you think? The "advantage" part comes in by his not saying anything specific (Is this what you want him to do, give more info, or are you more referring to his demeanor as a whole?), it helps the focus of the team, they aren't having to respond to any quote he says because he gives the media nothing to run with. He did tell Curran in an article a month or so ago words to the effect of if everything were known about the situation it would probably change people's perception. To me that implies that his reason for NOT saying anything is because it would implicate other teams or something like that.

We've been getting terrible press for years. The dallas cowboys were dealing drugs and smoking crack, the steelers were doing steroids.

Why do we get much worse press than they do?

Brady's the only one they let talk that handles the press.

If BB's not going to let coaches talk (i agree) he needs to be spokesman for the team and do his best.

Those newspapers aren't going out with huge holes in the sports page because he didn't feel like saying anything but cliches.

The writers will fill the void with something, probably negative.

 

[pheenix11]

I think BB is lousy at PR because his entire mind is consumed with football. He doesn't have the time or patience to play their stupid games. If he has to sacrifice some of his football preparation in order to become nicer to the press I say screw it. I'd rather win and be hated than lose and be loved.