If you’re a Patriots fan who believes coach Bill Belichick was the main reason quarterback Tom Brady left after 20 years in New England, then you may find Ian O’Connor to be preaching to the choir.
O’Connor, who’s well-known to many fans due to his longtime Patriots scripture, wrote Sunday he was told the 42-year-old quarterback was “Belichick’d out” and wanted to play for a coach like Tampa Bay Buccaneers’ Bruce Arians.
Here’s an excerpt from O’Connor’s piece on ESPN:
Measured against Belichick, Arians is a stand-up comic with a funny-looking cap and a strange way of managing defeat. “Win or lose, we booze,” is Arians’ oft-stated philosophy. Though people close to Brady believe that he was looking for a little more humanity in his coaching (“Tom was Belichick’d out after 20 years,” said one friend), and that Arians’ let’s-grab-a-couple-beers-and-sneak-in-nine-holes approach will be a welcome change, some league officials who know all parties wonder how Brady will adjust to a head coach who doesn’t quite match Belichick’s maniacal hours or attention to detail.
It’ll be interesting to see if Brady enjoys taking a step away from Belichick’s “No Days Off” mentality, or if he ends up wishing he never stepped away from Gillette Stadium.
