FOXBORO, Mass. — A lot of very good players have passed through New England during Bill Belichick’s tenure as Patriots head coach. Some truly great ones, too.
During a news conference Friday morning, Belichick explained how he differentiates between the two.
“I think great players help other players play better,” he said. “That’s what makes them great players. There are a lot of players that go out there and play very well, and they add a lot to your team. (But) there are certain players that help their teammates play better, and those guys are special. Because it’s not just what they do, it’s the uplifting of the players around them. So when you start talking about great players, that’s part of how I would define a player: a guy that can not only go out there and play well but have that kind of impact on his teammates.
“So when you start talking about great players, that’s part of how I would define a player: a guy that can not only go out there and play well but have that kind of impact on his teammates.”
Belichick named Super Bowl winners Rodney Harrison, Mike Vrabel and Tedy Bruschi as players who fulfilled that criteria during their time in New England.
“They brought out not only a high level of play themselves, but they brought it out in their teammates, as well,” the coach said.
The above responses stemmed from a question about current Patriots defensive backs Devin McCourty, Logan Ryan and Duron Harmon, three Rutgers products who all recorded interceptions in last Saturday’s divisional-round playoff win over the Houston Texans.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4Bmtop51Gfc
Belichick was asked about Harmon’s spoken desire to get a pick himself after McCourty and Ryan notched theirs, sparking his response about great players making their teammates better.
“First of all, it’s pretty unusual to have three players from the same school even on your team, let alone in the secondary,” Belichick added. “But whatever it was or wasn’t, those guys all do a great job. They work hard.”
Strangely enough, it wasn’t even the first time this season McCourty, Ryan and Harmon all came away with interceptions in the same game. They did so during New England’s third preseason contest, as well, picking off two passes from Cam Newton and one from Derek Anderson.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1xBXJSe5Cro
“It was just ironic that we had a similar situation in Carolina in preseason after a week that didn’t go particularly well,” Belichick said. “I was riding those guys pretty hard about a lot of the things they didn’t do well, and then they had the interceptions in Carolina, so I kind of had to hear about it.”
Thumbnail photo via David Butler II/USA TODAY Sports Images
