A Football Life by Bill Belichick - Teddy Bears and Costumes

Last week made for some pretty compelling television courtesy of NFL Films and Bill Belichick.  Following Belichick and the New England Patriots around for the 2009 season, last week we finally got a glimpse into the football mind of a Hall of Fame football coach.  What makes Part 2 of the documentary (and with Belichick dry sense of humor and sarcasm, it borders on mockumentary) so interesting is that we Patriots fans know how the season ended.  Fourth and two; Wes Welker's injury, the drubbing by the New Orleans Saints.  The beginning of the end started with Ray Rice's 83 yard touchdown run and ended with an embarrassing 33-14 loss in the Divisional playoffs.  I can't wait to see how this ends.

And does Derrick Mason get into Belichick's grill during that game?

Definitely not the Result of This Season.

Part 2 starts with us explaining to the kids Coach Belichick's costume for the Patriots' players' Halloween party.  Randy Moss just wants a DJ and go out like when he was younger!  And he seemed genuinely surprised that the Coaches were so interested in going to the party.

Next scene.  And in the ultimate foreshadowing moment, we see the Patriots convert a Fourth and one on their own 25 yard line against the Atlanta Falcons.  And in the next scene we are treated to a brutal stretch in the Colts game.  We all remember how this one turns out.

"Billy get ready on the fourth down I don't want to give them the ball back."  Belichick tells his OC as the Patriots line up on Third Down.  What a great scene with Brady.  "If it's a shitty look, Delay of Game."  Belichick tells Brady as they talk about the Fourth Down play.  A great perspective on perhaps the turning point of the Patriots 2009 season.  Was Belichick leaving the play call up to Brady so if the play failed to convert it was Brady's fault?

Anyway, it didn't matter.  Cut to the next scene against the Saints as Belichick reminisces about Super Bowl XXXVI.  Adam Vinatieri was the best player on that 2011 team?  Winning that game was a miracle?  And all of those great memories ended after the Saints handed our lunch back to us.  That scene was closely followed by a lighter moment.  In a scene with Greg Gumbel, Belichick goes on about his co-star the Chevy Impala and his inability to fix the clock for Daylight savings time.  It's never easy.

In an attempt to get so much fit in to an hour program, the scene then cuts quickly to the Jaguars clinching game.  After we see all of the defensive players dancing on defense, and then giving up a touchdown, Belichick goes absolutely bonkers and proceeds to yell at the "punks" who didn't play defense for 60 minutes. 

And then Welker goes down in the Texans game.  Really depressing stretch for the team, but honestly, this season was not a good season no matter how you cut it and we knew that from the get-go. And of course, the Playoff game went off like I thought it would - although we didn't see Derrick Mason come back over to the sideline for another jab at Belichick, Thank God.

And just like that, the show ends as it started, Belichick in Nantucket on his boat, V Rings.  I really hope they change the name of the boat this year. 

Takeaways:

1.  Belichick really relied on Brady as an extra coach out there.  The exchange between them at the Saints' game was extraordinary television.

2.  Belichick hates - I mean hates - fourth down punts.  Going for it on fourth down seems to be a mental block for him, at times as he justifies by explaining that he believes in his players to make those yards.  Sometimes, as in the Colts game, it backfires.

3.  I really like the family barbecue outside of the Stadium idea.  Maybe we'll hang around after the games from now on.  Maybe Wes Welker or Albert Haynesworth will have burgers cooking outside after one of the games.

Until we see VI Rings.  Thank you Bill Belichick and NFL Films.  That was fantastic television.

photo courtesy of bostonsportspulse.com