A couple of comments on your comments
1. You are right on the money with BB. Someday there will be a closer examination of how BB has built this machine to become the virtual unstoppable force that it has. And its not just just X's and O's. It's how they groom and develop their coaches, their scouting department, and all the other support aspects of a winning team
2. Back to the coaches. The Pats are unique in that they currently don't have a single coach who played in the NFL except Ray Ventrone who is in his first year. They also have the smallest staff in the league. Bi will has essentially surrounded himself with football geeks just like himself. Other guys who can see past the brutality of the game to its beauty and wonder. Guys who might not have played the game at the highest level, yet because they are the kind of guys who will go out and find the best best drills and do anything they can to get their players to their peak, those players respect them.
It might help that at first they have BB back them up, but eventually all these guys are seen as making their own contributions, and that's all the players want. They know that almost all of their coaches started in the film room break down film, and are only let out when they prove themselves are let out to work with players, and they don't stay long if they can't prove that they can make players better.
Someone should FINALLY tell Rex that players don't want a buddy, OR a motivator. They didn't get there without being self motivated. What they want is to be put in the position to succeed, and to be prepared to have the best chance to win the game. BB has respect because more often than not, when he tells his players if they do A, B, and C and they will win the game; it HAPPENS. And in those rare occasions when it doesn't he tells them why and promises to do better.
3. Bill's comment to Rex's humblepie was EXACTLY the right response. I almost shed a tear when I read it. It only shows that Rex doesn't have a clue. What he said was a insult to the Pats players and diminished their efforts. Bill didn't hesitate to have his players backs. In typical fashion Bill made it "all about THEM", instead of "all about HIM", like Rex.
4. What Bill understands better than any coach in the league is that HE, and everyone else that works in the program have just ONE job, and that is most definitely NOT to be the face of the franchise. His ONLY job is to get his team prepared for the next game.....and nothing else. If he had his druthers, he'd never have to say a word to the press. And his players know and love this, despite the fact he works their asses off and demands more mental study and discipline than any HC in the league. They knew when the signed up for this expectations were higher here, and success is hard.
5. But it's not just the philosophical and organizational stuff that makes the difference. I believe the key advantage is language. I thought you'd appreciate that Andy. Yes, language or semantic. I marveled watching Brady being able to communicate so much complex information so compactly under so much noise. But its not just important to communicate things in adverse conditions; it the key to being able to have weekly offensive and defensive game plans designed specifically to the team you are playing.
How can the Pats do it, while the rest can't.,......... Language. I don't don't know what it is or how it works, but somehow, with just a few words and motions, Brady can tell 11 players the play the routes, the blocking scheme, and most likely the back up play, in a matter of 5-8 words.
But more important than that skill, the language has to be so transparent that every player can given information that week that will allow him to be able to absorb a new offensive plan designed for just one team, and the same for the defense. A system so fleixible and interactive that immnediately after the game you can throw both plans way and start with a fresh sheet of paper, and by the time they come in on Monday, they will have ready on paper a rough plan for both sides of the ball for next teams plan, and they will all be able to absorb all their asignments and have it down by Friday.
The Semantics for them to be able to do all that must be phenomenal, It also must have taken a very long time to have evolved. But because it exists and we have a QB who have mastered it, we are the ONLY team in the league who can throw it 60 time this week, and run it 4o times the next. That is an unbelievable advantage to have in a competitive environment that is SO tight to begin with. (and another reason we don't have to cheat.)
6. Just thinking about this language and I just blew my mind when this thought occurred to me. This language has to be SOOOOOOOOO flexible and transparent, that when players move from our team to another the language has to be able to change enough, or be complex enough that it doesn't turn into a weakness if someone knows it. Simple/complex/flexible/complex/compressed/etc
Think about it and be amazed
