Although Pats fans may not know or even fully accept it just yet, the H.C. of the NOS has found a spot in their hearts because of his connection to one brief but former H.C. of the NYJ.
That's right, Sean Payton, the fourth-year coaching veteran and Super Bowl champion, is a lot like Bill Belichick.
And Payton has the bling because of it.
If you can get past their 11 years in age difference, the two football minds have a lot in common, and it's not just their past coaching jobs under Bill Parcells (Belichick in the 1980s and 1990s, Payton earlier this decade). Payton's offense was explosive all season long, but it's not simply because of Drew Brees' rocket arm, Pierre Thomas' legs or Marques Colston, Devery Henderson and Robert Meachem's hands. It was because of Payton's guts.
A gutsy coach leading his team to success. Sound familiar?
Payton's decision to go for it on fourth and goal from inches away was denied in the final minutes of the first half. The coach elected to pound for six points rather than kick for three, and the gamble flopped.
So what does he do? He calls for an onside kick to start things off in the second half and instantly change the makeup of the game.
Football fans all over the world went head-over-heels over the "trickeration," but Patriots fans, in particular, have every right to proudly admire Payton as a master in the Belichickian arts.
Such courageousness is needed in this football era. Teams are chock full of talent and experience but can be held back by cautious leadership. Dating all the way back to his early Patriots years, Belichick showed the NFL that chances need to be taken and players need to play. Payton picked this up, rode it to the title match and will go down as the King the Crescent City because of it.
