How Bill Belichick ‘Got Even’ After Being Injured By Patriots Champ

Scheming up unique gameplans wasn’t the only way Bill Belichick showcased his creativity at One Patriot Place.

The future Pro Football Hall of Fame coach also did so through punishments.

On a recent episode of Underdog Fantasy’s “COACH” podcast, Belichick recalled a Patriots preseason in which he was injured while teaching pass-rush fundamentals. Matt Patricia asked Belichick what he remembered about the situation, which led to the eight-time Super Bowl champion revealing how he punished the guilty party: longtime New England linebacker Roosevelt Colvin.

“I remember when he slapped me, he broke my rib. That’s what I remember,” Belichick told Patricia. “I came off the field and I was like ‘God, dog. My rib hurts. What happened?’ The thing was cracked and he slapped me and broke it. But I got even. I stuck him in a locker for the rest of the spring with one of his teammates, Matt Light, and they had all of their stuff together. The pictures of their wives were right next to each other. It was jammed in the same locker. And then Colvin came to me later in the spring and was like, ‘Hey, coach. I didn’t mean to do it.’ You didn’t mean to do it? What did you mean to do? ‘How long am I going to be in that locker?’ I said, ‘You’re going to be in that locker until my rib heals. That’s how long you’re gonna be in there. And it looks like it’s about eight weeks now, so just get comfortable.'”

Colvin certainly was comfortable in New England, where he played the final six seasons of his 10-year NFL career and won two Super Bowls. While those Lombardi Trophies likely are Colvin’s fondest memories of his time in Foxboro, Mass., the preeminent lowlights might include being put in the doghouse by Belichick.