Bill Belichick’s surprise appearance on Tom Brady’s “Let’s Go!” podcast featured an outpouring of mutual respect between the two Patriots icons.
It also featured a strong stance from Brady on the never-ending debate over which of them deserves more credit for the success of the New England dynasty.
“For me, there’s nobody I’d rather be associated with,” Brady said. “From my standpoint, I think it’s always such a stupid conversation to say, ‘Brady vs. Belichick’ because, in my mind, that’s not what a partnership is about. Coach couldn’t play quarterback, and I couldn’t coach.
“In my view, people were always trying to pull us apart. I don’t think we ever felt like that with each other. We never were trying to pull each other apart. We actually were always trying to go in the same direction. I think when we were in New England for 20 years together, you know, they get tired of writing the same story. So once they write all the nice things and championships and this and then they just start going, ‘Well, this works, let’s start trying to divide them.’ I never really appreciated those ways that people would try to do that.”
Of course, the relationship between Brady and Belichick soured over their two decades together, and the QB eventually left New England to play his final three NFL seasons with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Brady, though, said he always respected Belichick and felt the same from his head coach.
“He and I always had a great relationship, and we met all the time,” Brady said. “Did we always see everything exactly the same way? Who does in life? What close relationship can you have where everything goes like a bright sunny day? No, there are moments that, you know, it was never intolerable, but it was always just, I would say healthy debates about certain things, and we always talked about it face to face.
“I think that’s one thing I appreciate about Coach Belichick in life: He’s not afraid to have a hard conversation. We didn’t always agree, but we always respected each other. I know he respected me for the job that I did, and I certainly did the same. I think even when you go away from each other, you respect each other probably that much more. I certainly did because I realized the commitment he was trying to make to get our team to win.”
On the podcast, Belichick called Brady “the greatest player” and said he had “the greatest career,” echoing comments he made in a statement after Brady’s retirement announcement last week.
It remains unclear how the Patriots plan to honor Brady now that his playing days are finished, but team owner Robert Kraft said he hopes the future Hall of Famer signs a one-day contract to finish his career with New England.
