Bill Belichick Names Greatest Players He’s Coached (Other Than Tom Brady)

Bill Belichick will go down as one of the greatest coaches in NFL history, and multiple Hall of Famers have gotten to play under the Patriots head coach.

Tom Brady headlines that list, but Belichick’s days also stretch farther than New England. He is an eight-time Super Bowl champion if you include his days as New York Giants defensive coordinator under Bill Parcells. The great players also encompass all phases of the game.

“I’ve been very fortunate. I feel like I coached the best offensive player in Tom, the best defensive player in football in (Lawrence Taylor) and the best special teams player in football: Matt Slater,” Belichick told The 33rd Team in an interview published Tuesday. “When you have the opportunity to coach the greatest players — and that includes the specialists like Adam Vinatieri and Stephen Gostkowski, not taking anything away from them either, and great punters like (Sean) Landeta and (Dave) Jennings.

As a core special teams player, Slater really is the best of all time. I hope he gets recognized for that.

Belichick on Matthew Slater’s impact

“But the special teams coverage guys — and we’ve had a lot of them — back in the Giants with Reyna Thompson and great returners like (Dave) Meggett, (Julian) Edelman and Troy Brown. As a core special teams player, Slater really is the best of all time. I hope he gets recognized for that. But if you’re a coach and you can coach Taylor, Brady and Slater, that’s three really good players.”

Slater is an important part of the New England locker room, and Belichick said his return for his 16th season was “well received.”

The Patriots captain is a three-time Super Bowl champion and eight-time All-Pro special teams player. It would not be surprising if he does get enshrined as a Pro Football Hall of Famer once he closes the door on his career.