2001 stories     The List: Best Moves Of 2001 31-Dec-2001, ESPN.com Page 2 "2. New England Patriots coach Bill Belichick sticks with Tom Brady after Drew Bledsoe returns from his injury: Seems obvious, in retrospect, but how many nonlegends would have the cojones to keep his $100 million man on the bench while staking everything on a minimum-wage rookie QB? ... Also receiving votes: Belichick tries to boot Terry Glenn from the Pats." full story           NFL Coaches Club Chat 27-Dec-2001, NFL.com "On Dec. 27, football fans had the chance to talk with a Coach of the Year candidate, New England Patriots head coach Bill Belichick." full transcript           Belichick Has A Gifted Touch 24-Dec-2001, Boston Globe "The season is not yet finished and many things remain to be decided in the National Football League, but one race is over. Bill Belichick is the AFC Coach of the Year. Regardless of what happens over the next two weekends – and frankly there remain many possibilities and not all of them are good ones for the Patriots – no coach in pro football has done so much with so little this season and no one has faced and solved as many problems as Belichick." full story           Patriots' Formula For Success Reduced To Simplest Terms 23-Dec-2001, Providence Journal "The story of yesterday was very simple. Yesterday came down to the essence of football. Who blocks and tackles the best. Who controls the line of scrimmage. Who is more physical. The game stripped of all its complexities, its endless strategies and schemes, its endless preparation. The artery that runs through football's heart." full story           Moment In The Sun: Belichick, with his father by his side, leads the way 23-Dec-2001, Boston Herald "Steve Belichick admires this team his son has put together. 'They've got guys who love to play, and they didn't spend a ton of money getting them.' Guys like Buffalo Bills dropout (never played a down for them) and former XFLer Freddie Coleman. Yesterday Coleman recovered a fumble and killed Miami's last hope by latching on to an onside kick as if it were the Hope diamond. 'I'm just trying to help,' said Coleman." full story           Belichick Becomes Life Of Patriots' Party 22-Dec-2001, ESPN.com "Here was the truly wondrous element of Belichick's early Christmas party to a longsuffering legion of fans who began the year with few expectations and are concluding it with visions of a Super Bowl appearance parading through their craniums: For once the crowd hugged Belichick back. Its reaction to the Patriots' 20-13 victory over the Miami Dolphins was an endorsement of the coach previously regarded as unlovable and this surprisingly successful year served as a validation of the man and also of his methods." full story           Back In The Highlife 18-Dec-2001, Associated Press "Bill Belichick talked about video replay, the strength of his special teams and the weakness of his offense against the Buffalo Bills. Then he discussed what really matters now: the Miami Dolphins. Less than 24 hours after a bizarre replay call helped New England to a 12-9 overtime win over Buffalo, the AFC East's worst team, Belichick focused on Saturday's game against the division leader." full story           Human Interests 09-Dec-2001, Akron Beacon Journal "A few days ago, Belichick also phoned ex-Browns quarterback Bernie Kosar to congratulate him on his new publication, Bernie's Insiders, that is replacing BN/I. Kosar and Belichick buried the hatchet less than a year ago from their disagreements of the early 1990s." full story           The Metamorphosis Of Bill Belichick 09-Dec-2001, Boston Herald "If you have witnessed the manner in which Belichick has carried himself since returning to New England, it's clear that this isn't the same man who was practically run out of town on a rail after five seasons as head coach of the Original Cleveland Browns." full story           Wins Loosen Belichick's Reserve 03-Dec-2001, USA TODAY "'He's usually not that emotional, but anybody would get emotional like that when your football team is making plays and doing things,' [Richard] Seymour said. 'If you play with intensity, if you play with pride, if you go out there and have fun, that's what happens. It makes it fun for everybody, Coach included.'" full story           Ultraserious Belichick Can't A Contain Smile 03-Dec-2001, New York Times "'We were down 13 points to a team playing at home, coming off a bye and leading the East,' Belichick said. 'If we don't get it done in the last 30 minutes, we're looking down a barrel. We just had to stick in there and we did.' ... 'We're 7-5, and a lot of people didn't think we would be in this position,' Belichick said. 'We came from a long way back, a long way uphill, and it's pretty satisfying.'" full story           Inspired By History Lesson 30-Nov-2001, Newsday "'[Shackleton's Antarctic Adventure is] a story that not a lot of people have heard about, but it's one that sends so many good messages, not only to a football team, but really to anyone,' Belichick said. 'I had talked to the team about how it's going to be a long season, a lot will happen, and there will be obstacles along the way. When you see what they faced on that boat, you realize that your problems are small by comparison.'" full story           In New England, Brady Looks Like An Old Pro 29-Nov-2001, Washington Post "At 6:30 a.m. on the day after Thanksgiving, New England Patriots Coach Bill Belichick walked into the practice facility and was startled to find someone working out in the weight room. He popped his head into the room and was even more surprised to see his quarterback. 'There's not a lot of players – let alone quarterbacks – you'd see there that early, especially the day after Thanksgiving,' Belichick said. 'He really is a very special kid.'" full story           The Buck Stops With Bill 24-Nov-2001, Boston Globe "Decisions, decisions. Bill Belichick isn't shy about making them. He doesn't care what anyone thinks. He knows people will talk. He says he respects others' opinions, but he's not about to be swayed, except perhaps by his staff and the people he respects most in football. And even then, he'll do what he feels he has to do." full story           There's A Risk Factor At Work For Belichick 22-Nov-2001, Boston Globe "Bill Belichick walked the plank this week. Now Tom Brady will decide if he goes off the end of it or not. The Patriots' personality-challenged coach created a quarterback controversy where none existed when he declared on his Monday radio show that Brady was the team's starting quarterback 'for the foreseeable future.' When Belichick mouthed those words, he either had no idea what he was doing or knew exactly the firestorm he was creating." full story           Brady Fits The Bill: Belichick Endorses QB For Rest Of Season 20-Nov-2001, Boston Herald "While the Patriots quarterback debate rages on in the stands, over the airwaves and in newsprint, it's over in the head coach's office. In the latest, but by no means final, chapter of the quarterback controversy, Belichick has decided to remain with Tom Brady as the starter over Drew Bledsoe." full story           Rams-Pats Matches Aggressive Offense, Traditional Defense 17-Nov-2001, St. Louis Post-Dispatch "You have to love this coaching matchup, Mike Martz vs. Bill Belichick. Martz and the Rams bring their hip-hop offense to New England to take on Belichick's traditional, old-school defense. It's a fascinating contrast in style. Just look at the family coaching trees involved in Sunday night's game." full story           Brady A Model Of Efficiency 29-Oct-2001, Sports Illustrated "Now 3-1 as a starter while filling in for the injured Drew Bledsoe, Brady has been the model of efficiency, completing 60% of his attempts and throwing 131 passes without an interception while tossing five touchdown passes. The 199th pick in the 2000 draft, out of Michigan, Brady caught the eye of New England coach Bill Belichick with his accuracy (62% in two seasons as a college starter), intelligence and arm strength." full story           Pats Let The Good Times Roll 22-Oct-2001, Eagle-Tribune "While talking about one of the more explosive issues in New England these days – Tom Brady or Drew Bledsoe? – coaching great Bill Walsh, now a consultant with the San Francisco 49ers, went out of his way to talk about another subject in New England. New England Patriots head coach and football CEO Bill Belichick. 'I put him right up there among the top defensive minds that I've ever coached against,' said Walsh, from his Palo Alto, Calif. office. 'He's a great defensive coach. He has a great mind. He can plan, direct and strategize as well as any (defensive coach) that I've seen.' But we knew that didn't we." full story           Patriots Have Jets To Thank For Yesterday's Spirited Victory 01-Oct-2001, Eagle-Tribune "Just how much foresight does Patriots coach Bill Belichick have anyway? Who would have thought, back on the sidelines as an assistant head coach for Bill Parcells' New York Jets from 1997-99, he was building one of the NFL's nastiest defenses of the future? For the New England Patriots!" full story           Patriots Character Facing Test 24-Sep-2001, Eagle-Tribune "Move over Joe Kerrigan. Coach Bill Belichick now officially owns the toughest job in New England sports. With his New England Patriots at 0-2, staring down the barrel of a high-powered Indianapolis offense and a maniacal Miami defense, Belichick has to find a way to keep his troops together." full story           No Respect 09-Sep-2001, Eagle-Tribune "What do Las Vegas, Monday Night Football, Pro Football Weekly, ESPN: The Magazine, Sports Illustrated and the NFL schedule-maker have in common? They don't respect the New England Patriots." full story           NFL Preview: New England 03-Sep-2001, Sports Illustrated "Coach Bill Belichick has been trying to upgrade the talent around his quarterback. During the off-season the Patriots brought in 22 free agents, among the highest number in the league and the most in franchise history. Last year New England suffered from below-average talent (running backs, offensive line), nagging injuries to some of its best players (middle linebacker Ted Johnson, defensive end Willie McGinest) and a drop-off in focus and production by a former Pro Bowler (cornerback Ty Law)." full story           Team Bonds In Providence 02-Aug-2001, Patriots.com "With those Giants slated to visit Bryant College next week, Bill Belichick got his team together out on the town last night for some team building of his own. Belichick bussed the entire squad to the Providence Place Mall where the players slipped in and out a freight entrance virtually unnoticed and took in a viewing of Shackleton's Antarctic Adventure at the IMAX Theater. Not coincidentally, Belichick commented earlier in the week that he read that book, which is about survival, over the summer." full story           Cox Gives Pats Depth 02-Aug-2001, Associated Press "Miami's fifth-round draft pick in 1991 out of Western Illinois, Cox played two seasons for Chicago, where he wore No. 52 because Dick Butkus' 51 is retired, and three with the Jets. For two of those seasons, Patriots coach Bill Belichick was Cox's defensive coordinator. 'He's the best defensive coach, game day, that I've ever played for,' Cox said. 'In the first quarter, he can tell you how the game's going to play out. He's very rarely wrong, and he's just so calm you don't get the chaos on the sideline as you do in some other places.'" full story           Patriots: Bargain Hunting 17-Jul-2001, ESPN.com "Bill Belichick hasn't had a lot to work with this offseason because of the Patriots' dire salary cap standing, but that didn't leave him inactive. Belichick signed some 11 free agents and drafted 10 more players in April, almost sure to make his team, which was 5-11 last year, look a lot different in 2001." full story           Patriots Hoping New Means Better 07-Jun-2001, Providence Journal "'We finished last in our division the last two years,' coach Bill Belichick noted. Changes, then, were inevitable. Still, the scope of the house-cleaning turned out to be wider than expected. Including Riddick Parker, a free-agent defensive lineman whose signing was announced on Tuesday, the Pats have 88 players on their roster. Only 23 were on the team two years ago." full story           These 3 Put On A Show: Belichick, Sanderson and Yaz entertain at the Fenn School 12-May-2001, TownOnline.com "Wait, was that really Bill Belichick, the anti-boulevardier, sitting behind a microphone, letting his hair down, answering questions, heck even asking questions, and actually enjoying the give-and-take, his smile ear to ear? Bill Belichick? The Patriots coach? Yep. Friday night at the Fenn School they somehow rounded up Belichick, Carl Yastrzemski, no lover of public appearances either, and Derek Sanderson for an open-end sports discussion as part of the school's Alumni Day, with Sports Illustrated's E.M. Swift (Carlisle resident) serving as moderator." full story (link fixed)           Patriots Tackle A Big Need 22-Apr-2001, Eagle-Tribune "Hooray for Belichick. He is not out to make headlines with his draft picks. He's out to make this team better at its core." full story           Now Hard Part Begins For Rebuilding Patriots 08-Mar-2001, Eagle-Tribune "On a day when the Dallas Cowboys said goodbye to their franchise quarterback, Troy Aikman, the New England Patriots decided to keep theirs around for a while, signing Drew Bledsoe to a complex 10-year, $103 million deal. Consider that the easy part as the Patriots begin the recovery process from three years of fruitless drafting under personnel man Bobby Grier and a 5-11 season with coach Bill Belichick running the show." full story           Time To See If Belichick Can Lead 02-Feb-2001, Eagle-Tribune "Yesterday, Belichick took a step in the right direction by hiring Romeo Crennel, a defensive line coach in New England for the Bill Parcells era (1993 to 1996), as his defensive coordinator. ... 'I feel real comfortable with Romeo,' said Belichick. 'Nobody has worked more closely with me since (I've been in the NFL) than Romeo has.'" full story

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