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Today in Patriots History
Patriots hire Bill Belichick
Former Pats DC becomes franchise's 14th Head Coach
Three weeks of contract law drama finally comes to an end
Patriots hire Bill Belichick
Former Pats DC becomes franchise's 14th Head Coach
Three weeks of contract law drama finally comes to an end
January 27, 2000:
Patriots name Bill Belichick their 14th head coach in franchise history.
Belichick had 25 years of NFL experience at the time, including one season (1996) as the Pats Assistant Head Coach/Defensive Backs Coach.
He became the team's 14th head coach (16th including interim coaches Hank Bullough and Phil Bengston) in franchise history.
Belichick was most well known for a positive (earning two super bowl rings as defensive coordinator with the New York Giants - inclding a super bowl game plan that sits in the Pro Football Hall of Fame), and an up-and-down tenure with the Cleveland Browns (getting rid of fan favorite but insubordinate Benie Kosar; having to get through a season starting a third-string QB due to injuries; taking over a 3-11 roster and turning them into a playoff team; dealing with the lost focus and turmoil after Art Modell announced the Browns would relocate).
New England traded three draft picks (including a 2000 first-rounder) for two Jet draft picks and the right to hire Belichick as the team's head coach.
There is a very well detailed history of how the trade occurred below, including conjecture at that time that Oakland was the best fit for Belichick, to assessment of what the Jets received in return:
Outside of the disappointing season, there was little reason to think Belichick was unhappy until a December 1 report from Rich Cimini of the Daily News suggested the Patriots could target Belichick to replace the struggling Carroll that offseason. Cimini noted the unsettled nature of the New York franchise, which was still undergoing sale talks, and delivered this fateful prediction: “In five weeks, this matter will heat up. Count on it.”
Five weeks later, things did heat up. On January 3, 2000, Parcells resigned from his position with the Jets, saying he was “not going to coach any more football games” and that the move “definitely is the end of my career.” A half hour later, the Patriots fired Carroll and faxed the Jets a request to interview Belichick for openings at both head coach and general manager.
The Jets turned down New England’s request, a move they saw as logical. NFL teams can’t block other franchises from interviewing their personnel for head-coaching opportunities unless the candidate is already a head coach, and the Jets interpreted the language in Belichick’s contract to mean that he immediately became the head coach of the Jets upon Parcells’s departure.
Belichick, from gathered reports at the time, clearly thought otherwise. He surely saw the opportunity in New England as a chance to run an entire organization on his own without any risk of interference from Parcells, who was retaining his title of chief of football operations even after resigning as coach. Belichick interpreted the Patriots’ interest as representing a promotion because it included the title of general manager, and when the Jets thought otherwise, there was only one way to test their will.
The next day, Belichick attended the press conference to announce his hiring, only to read from a prepared note that he was leaving the organization. In his remarks, Belichick specifically expressed his concern that the organization and the promises made to him by Hess lay under uncertain terms, noting he had been told by Parcells that the sale of the team was going to be completed by December 15, a deadline that had come and gone without a sale. “The agreement I made was with Mr. Hess, Bill Parcells, and [Jets president] Steve Gutman when I signed the contract, and that has changed dramatically,” Belichick said. “If I’m letting somebody down, I’m sorry, but the situation has been changed significantly and I have to do what’s fair to all the people involved.”
The Jets immediately confirmed with the league office that Belichick’s contract was valid and that he wouldn’t be allowed to coach anywhere in football if he left the organization. An appeal to commissioner Paul Tagliabue’s office was denied on January 22, leading Belichick’s lawyer, Jeffrey Kessler, to file an antitrust lawsuit against the league and seek a temporary injunction for Belichick to negotiate with other teams. That request was rejected in court, which led Belichick to withdraw his lawsuit.
In the meantime, both teams made moves. The Jets promoted linebackers coach Al Groh to the head-coaching gig. The Patriots, unsure if they could hire their desired candidate, expressed interest in the likes of Mike Martz, Tom Moore, and Gary Kubiak before interviewing Raiders defensive coordinator Willie Shaw, Bears offensive coordinator Gary Crowton, and Jaguars defensive coordinator Dom Capers.
Crucially, in that three-week stretch, the Jets were finally sold. Woody Johnson beat out Cablevision magnate Charles Dolan7 with a bid of $635 million, buying the team from Hess’s estate on January 12. Once Belichick’s lawsuit fizzled out, Johnson immediately went to work with Kraft on a deal that would settle the situation and send Belichick to the Patriots. One day later, the Belichick swap was done.
Robert Kraft, Patriots still smiling on 20th anniversary of Bill Belichick trade
Giving up a first round draft pick and several other selections to the Jets for the rights to Bill Belichick remains one of best trades in NFL history.
www.bostonherald.com
Patriots owner Robert Kraft made a major decision two decades ago on behalf of the franchise that was initially met with eyeball rolls and skepticism on many fronts.
When Kraft sent a first-round pick to the Jets for the right to hire Bill Belichick, the prevailing view was that he would ultimately regret the move.
Funny how that turned out.
Six Super Bowl championships, nine conference crowns and 16 division titles later, Kraft is smiling. The trade for Belichick is one of the moves that’s defined his ownership, and helped build a dynasty. In fact, it’s one of the greatest trades in NFL history.
Looking back at Belichick's two decades of dominance | Patriots.com - Paul Perillo, Jan 27, 2020
The numbers are staggering:
- 6 Super Bowl titles (two more than any other HC)
- 9 Conference titles (three more than any other HC)
- 17 Division titles
- Career record – 311-148 (.678)
- Regular season – 280-136 (.673)
- Postseason – 31-12 (.721)
- Patriots record – 274-103 (.727)
From Mike Reiss, Jan 27, 2020
Lack of buzz about Bill Belichick hire 20 years ago comical in hindsight
The coach's incredible run with New England was not foreseen by a Boston market that greeted him with a mix of lukewarm expectations and fan apathy.
www.espn.com
On Page 85, a story that gauged fan reaction to the hire was modest. Some were expecting a bigger name like Marty Schottenheimer, or a package deal of Dom Capers as coach and Tom Donahoe as general manager. "I think the combination of Capers and Donahoe was more promising," one fan was quoted as saying.
In a story headlined It's all so crazy, it just might work, Boston Globe columnist Dan Shaughnessy wrote, "Belichick's behavior in recent weeks indicates he might be enough of a wacko to be an effective head coach."
Inside Super Bowl XXV: Whitney Houston's anthem, Bill Belichick's game plan and Scott Norwood's miss
As they await Super Bowl LV, fans can only hope it replicates the drama provided 30 years ago in one of the NFL's most memorable title games.
www.espn.com
The Belichick game plan
Then a 38-year-old defensive coordinator for the Giants, Bill Belichick devised a unique game plan that sits in the Pro Football Hall of Fame inside a big blue binder. His plan to shut down the Bills' K-Gun offense led by QB Jim Kelly was to employ two defensive linemen, four linebackers and five defensive backs, and make Buffalo's wide receivers pay every time they touched the ball while allowing Buffalo running back Thurman Thomas to rush for 100 yards.
Carl Banks, Giants linebacker (1984-92): "We thought Bill was crazy, because [the] first thing he said was we want Thurman Thomas to get 100 yards. ... We just weren't allowing running backs to get 100 yards."
