Have a question about Gillette Stadium weather? Just ask Belichick
Former New England Patriots head coach Bill Belichick is one of the greatest football minds ever, and his attention to detail is a big reason why.
Belichick had decades of football knowledge instilled into him growing up, and he’s learned from the greatest figures in the sport. He’s passed that down and utilized that knowledge to win eight Super Bowls, and it’s why multiple current and former players have high respect for the 72-year-old.
Former Patriots players have told many fascinating and bizarre stories about Belichick, and Devin McCourty’s from “This Is Football” showed how detailed the future Hall of Fame head coach was.
“This is my rookie year. We’re playing the Jets on Monday night so we’re doing a nighttime walkthrough Sunday night before the game,” McCourty told Kevin Clark. “He grabs all the corners, and he grabs me. He said, ‘Hey, running down this sideline, the way the wind pattern is in our stadium going toward the open end, the wind rolls like this. So the ball is going to look like it’s going further than it is, but it’s going to hit the wind, and it’s just gonna drop. So when you’re running on this side, make sure you turn around and get your head back.’ And I remember sitting there like, really, dude? The wind pattern?
“And sure enough, I get a ‘Go’ ball that side against Braylon Edwards. I turn and I look back, and I remembered what Bill said. I turn back, the ball drops right in my lap for an interception. From that point on, there was nothing the guy would tell me where I would be like, nope. I believed in everything. I was drinking the Kool-Aid after that.”
It’s not the first time Belichick went deep into a wind breakdown. In fact, when the Patriots debuted their new video board in Gilette Stadium, he pointed out how it would change wind patterns for kickers.
The Patriots crushed the Jets, 45-3, in the 2010 game McCourty referenced. But the Patriots legend put it back into the spotlight how detail-oriented Belichick was and why he’s revered as one of the best head coaches in NFL history.