There are two sides to Bill Belichick — the coach and the general manager — and some pundits, like Marshall Faulk, aren’t overly impressed with his work in the latter area.
Faulk ripped Belichick’s drafting history with the New England Patriots while discussing the state of the organization before Thursday night’s Green Bay Packers-Minnesota Vikings game on the NFL Network. The former NFL running back pulled no punches.
“We have to look at him and say Bill Belichick has drafted awfully. Some of these guys that they’ve drafted, especially receivers to help Tom Brady, they’ve just not even come close to helping,” Faulk said. “When you think about the best two things that happened to Tom Brady: Randy Moss and Wes Welker. That’s it. They didn’t draft either of those guys.”
Maybe Faulk still is disgruntled about New England defeating his St. Louis Rams in Super Bowl XXXVI, but the seven-time Pro Bowler wasn’t alone in criticizing the Pats. Bill Cowher, who coached the Pittsburgh Steelers from 1992 to 2006, also offered his two cents on the Patriots’ issues. His problem is with New England’s coaching staff, which suffered a huge loss before this season.
“One of the biggest losses that has gone overlooked is the loss of Dante Scarnecchia,” Cowher said. “Their quarterback is not comfortable in the pocket, he’s not making connections with the outside receivers. … You can’t underestimate the importance of an offensive line coach.”
Belichick is revered in New England, and for good reason. The Patriots certainly have seen better days, though, and there’s enough blame to go around for everybody.
Photo via John Froschauer/AP Photo
