Tedy Bruschi retires. Does anybody realize Bruschi has been around through the regimes of Bill Parcells (1996), Pete Carroll (1997-99) and Bill Belichick (2000-present)? Amazing that a battering-ram inside 'backer always battling the too-small prejudice could last that long with so many different coaches.
Bruschi made as many plays as any other defensive player in New England's three Super Bowl seasons, and it was clear he couldn't make them anymore. He told former teammate Rodney Harrison recently he was having trouble with his legs, and if he lost the ability to make plays sideline-to-sideline and in coverage, he had no chance to beat out the bevy of young linebackers Belichick had brought in over the past three or four years.
But what Bruschi did off the field was just as important. Just as Tom Brady was on offense, Bruschi was the defensive guy who never hesitated to get in mates' grills and tell them they had to play better, or stop screwing around off the field. His consistency, his devotion to the offseason program, even after winning multiple titles, and his comeback from the stroke were things that can't be measured in regular football terms like tackles and wins. "He reminds me of Junior Seau, from all the things he did off the field,'' Harrison said this morning. "Didn't matter how much he had accomplished, he was always trying to get better.''
That's a good legacy.
