The legend of Bill Belichick has been gradually tarnished since the departure of Tom Brady from New England. Looking back, the only logical conclusion is that Brady was the key to the Patriots’ success.
Tom Brady’s signing with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in 2020 marked the end of an era in Boston. After six Super Bowl victories, the divorce between Brady and Belichick was unimaginable only a few years ago. But the quarterback needed to prove himself elsewhere.
However, Belichick has been helpless since the departure of his quarterback. Conversely, Brady was able to win a Super Bowl, in Tampa Bay, without the right Bill.
The latter is on track to have the worst season since his arrival with the Patriots. The team has a record of two wins and eight losses. Belichick’s other two worst seasons at the helm of the Pats were in 2000, with five wins, and in 2020, with seven wins. In 2000, Brady was not yet a starter and by 2020, he had defected. Leaving Bill Belichick alone.
Belichick is unable to produce Mac Jones, despite being a smart quarterback with a Brady-like style. We will come back to this.
But the contribution of TB12 was not only felt in the work of the head coach. All the offensive coordinators who gravitated around Tom Brady during his glory years were unable to stand on their own two feet, unlike him.
Bill O’Brien, offensive coordinator of the Pats in 2011, did nothing extraordinary during six years at the helm of the Houston Texans. The passage of Josh McDaniels, Brady’s sidekick, was difficult with the Las Vegas Raiders. Charlie Weis was never able to secure a head coaching job in the NFL after leaving New England.
The same goes for the receivers. What did Chris Hogan, Danny Amendola and Julian Edelman do without Tom Brady? Almost nothing.
For three seasons, Patriots fans have been languishing, with only one appearance in the playoffs. They miss Brady sorely. Perhaps more than we anticipated, because Belichick’s genius is perhaps less great than we believed.
For the first time in the Patriots’ 23 years, the starting quarterback position is up for grabs. Mac Jones doesn’t do the job. However, he is not the only one. It’s impossible to ask his center to perform miracles when the three main targets he has are Kendrick Bourne, Demario Douglas and Hunter Henry.
Jones is incapable of doing the same. It would be unrealistic to compare him to the greatest quarterback in history, but his potential was enormous. Remember how dominant he was with the Alabama Crimson Tide in 2021. He was the perfect candidate to replace Brady without shaking up the identity of the Patriots. Jones is a pocket quarterback who can shine in a good system. However, Belichick’s system has flaws.
Then, despite everything, when we look at Jones’ statistics, we realize that his performance is far from terrible. Over the past three seasons, the 15th overall pick in the 2021 draft has completed 66.2% of his passes, thrown 46 touchdown passes and 34 interceptions and has compiled 8,829 yards through the air.
For comparison, first overall pick Trevor Lawrence has a 64% completion rate, 48 touchdowns, 31 interceptions and 10,136 yards.
Going down the list, it’s not much better. Second overall pick Zach Wilson completed 56.5 percent of his passes, scored 21 touchdowns, had 25 interceptions and threw for 5,966 yards. The third pick, Trey Lance, simply never blossomed. The 11th pick, Justin Fields, completed 60.4 percent of his passes, threw 36 touchdown passes and 27 interceptions, and compiled 5,482 yards through the air.
Mac Jones is having a hard time, but he is not the only one responsible for the Patriots’ setbacks. He just fell on the wrong team. His next game, against the New York Giants, will be decisive for the future.
