Bill Belichick knows how important the basics are when conditions become unfavorable.
The New England Patriots head coach stressed the fundamentals of defensive football Sunday during the team’s Week 8 win over the Cleveland Browns. The rain-soaked conditions at Gillette Stadium didn’t make for spectacular football, something Belichick was keen to convey to his players, as we see in this mic’d up video Inside the NFL shared Tuesday night via Twitter.
“Hey, that’s what I’m talking about right there,” Belichick said. “It’s off fundamentals: Leverage and tackling, get the runner first, the second guy will get the ball. Good leverage, breakdown … and tackle.
“Alright, it’s going to be like that all day. We all got to do it.”
In the absence of a defensive coordinator on the coaching staff, Belichick has taken a hands-on role with the Patriots defense this season. It can’t be a coincidence the unit has performed at a historic level under his watchful eye.
Belichick now is just the third head coach in NFL history to win 300 games. Nobody reaches that mark by losing sight of the fundamentals.
