2019 BB: Always in Playoff Form

mwonow

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Sep 4, 2005
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New year, new thread for BB!

I loved today's press conference (and actually, I love that transcripts are a feature of patriots.com). Check out the sequence of five questions on Casserio about 1/3 of the way down (and who asks this crap, anyway?). As a bonus, he's asked:

Q: What are your thoughts on the idea that you can challenge penalties now?

...which refers to an approach that he's been advocating for years. Does he say this? Nope...

BB: It doesn't really matter what I think. It's what the rule is. We'll try to, like I said, understand it, use it and apply it properly.
 

InstaFace

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God damn I love me some dismissive BB answers.

Q: What kind of role do you envision for Braxton Berrios?
BB: Whatever he earns.

Q: Does [Caserio] have executive power over roster decisions, or is that your power?
BB: I've never talked about contracts, so I'm not going to start talking about them now. So, I don't know why you would bring it up.
Q: Can you provide some clarification?
BB: There's no clarification. I'm not talking about contracts, period. Players, coaches, or anybody else's. I never have and I don't plan to.
Saying a lot of words without saying anything:

Q: Do you anticipate Nick Caserio having a similar role?
BB: Yeah. Again, we've had a number of changes on the staff. Not everything will be exactly the same as it's been. It's not that way anyways, so I'm sure a lot of things will be the same, there may be a few differences. There are differences for all of us – there's differences for me, there's differences for other coaches – so, I'm sure there'll be a little bit of both. Each year is a little bit different.
I mean, if this whole football thing doesn't work out, he could be white house press secretary.

But then, you get him on a topic he can actually speak his mind on, and boom...

Q: Talk about Ty Law's worthiness for induction into the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
BB: Yeah, I've talked about Ty a lot, and Ty was a great player for us. He had a great career. I coached him as an assistant coach in '96 and as a head coach when I came back in 2000, so I think he's one of the top players in his position – certainly as good as anybody I've ever coached at that position – him and [Everson] Walls. It was the end of Everson's career, so it was a little bit different. End of [Frank] Minnifield's career in Cleveland too, but yeah he was a great player. He had a great impact on our team and our organization. I don't think we would have had the success we've had without him. We would have had success, but he was a big part of it.

Q: I'm sure it was helpful for him to be developing, along with other players, when you came in as head coach.
BB: Well, we had a lot of good, young players here in 1996. That was [Tedy] Bruschi's rookie year, [Willie] McGinest was young, [Lawyer] Milloy was young, Law was young and then we added to that. Those guys were still here when I came back, and then we added the [Mike] Vrabel's and [Roosevelt] Colvin's and Rodney Harrison's and [Richard] Seymour's and guys like that. Look, it's always good to have good players and he was a very good one. Ty was tough, he would tackle, he could play against big receivers and he was physical against guys – you know, the Marvin Harrison's of the world – that were maybe a little quicker, but Ty had great instincts and size and playing presence, and he matched up well with those type of players too, as well as [Eric] Moulds, and some of the other big guys he covered.
Also, I didn't know officials attended and called stuff at joint practices, that's pretty cool:

Q: Does the process of coaching that rule start now or do you wait until game action so you can see how officials are calling it?
BB: No, we're going to coach it based on our understanding of the rule, and then when we practice against Detroit and Tennessee and the officials are there at those practices, I'm sure we'll communicate with them and they'll tell us what they see. "This was a foul, this wasn't a foul, this is OK, that wasn't OK." That's part of what training camp is for, too, is to take a new rule or a new situation like that. Last year it was the kickoff rule. Again, it's more than one thing, but that was an example of last year – the kickoff rule and kickoff situations – looking through options on that and trying to apply them and so forth.
 

NortheasternPJ

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I was actually surprised he didn't answer the "What Role will Braxton Barrios play on this team" with "Center, Guard, Long Snapper, Punter, it's up to him he's got to earn it"
 

TheoShmeo

Skrub's sympathy case
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I eagerly await the annual Boston media columns about what a meany BB is and how he owes it the media (umm, the fans) to be more forthcoming and less rude.

Don't let us down, mediots.
 

loshjott

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Dec 30, 2004
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I eagerly await the annual Boston media columns about what a meany BB is and how he owes it the media (umm, the fans) to be more forthcoming and less rude.

Don't let us down, mediots.
I don't live in Boston or read or listen to Boston media.

Do they really still do that? I mean 18+ years of unprecedented success isn't enough?
 

joe dokes

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Those guys were still here when I came back, and then we added the [Mike] Vrabel's and [Roosevelt] Colvin's and Rodney Harrison's and [Richard] Seymour's and guys like that.
After BB reads this, whoever inserted all those apostrophes will be running the hill tomorrow.
 

bakahump

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Can he continue to have press conferences after he retires? Or at least a live web cam of his domestic life.

Linda: Hows Breakfast
BB: Its fine, I mean we will have to see how it goes.
Linda: Any thoughts on dinner?
BB: I am not gonna talk about that now. Its too early. We will have to see how things shake out.
Linda:Well do you want to go out?
BB:look, I addressed that, I have never spoken about dinner at breakfast in the past and dont plan to start now.
BBs Grand kid: Grampa will you push me on the swing?
BB: We will have to see if you earn that.
Steve: Dad can I borrow the boat
BB: Its really not that simple. Alot goes into that decision. We need to see where we are and look at it kinda that way. We wont just decide all of a sudden.
Steve: Well was your Grandchild good while I was gone?
BB: He did good things, but there are things he can work on. He knows that. Its not just him. Linda, You and I all need to do a better job. If we coach him up I expect we will continue to see improvement.
 

koufax32

He'll cry if he wants to...
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Dec 8, 2006
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Can he continue to have press conferences after he retires? Or at least a live web cam of his domestic life.

Linda: Hows Breakfast
BB: Its fine, I mean we will have to see how it goes.
Linda: Any thoughts on dinner?
BB: I am not gonna talk about that now. Its too early. We will have to see how things shake out.
Linda:Well do you want to go out?
BB:look, I addressed that, I have never spoken about dinner at breakfast in the past and dont plan to start now.
BBs Grand kid: Grampa will you push me on the swing?
BB: We will have to see if you earn that.
Steve: Dad can I borrow the boat
BB: Its really not that simple. Alot goes into that decision. We need to see where we are and look at it kinda that way. We wont just decide all of a sudden.
Steve: Well was your Grandchild good while I was gone?
BB: He did good things, but there are things he can work on. He knows that. Its not just him. Linda, You and I all need to do a better job. If we coach him up I expect we will continue to see improvement.

You missed the obvious.

Linda: How was breakfast?

BB: We’re on to lunch.
 

mwonow

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Nick Caserio at the mic today, slapping down Texans questions and otherwise responding as BB himself might: https://www.patriots.com/news/transcript-nick-caserio-press-conference-7-27

Here's an example:

Q: Have you received any clarity on what Josh Gordon would have to do to come back or when he could come back?
NC: Really, it's a league matter so we'll let the league handle that. So, when we're notified accordingly, whatever that process entails, we'll follow the rules accordingly so that's a league matter.

Q: Is there an appropriate level of communication between the team and the league on the Josh Gordon situation or are you guys in the dark on it as much as we in the media are?
NC: No, we'll just take it day to day and whatever information that we have, if there's anything new then we'll be informed. If there's nothing new, then we'll just kind of keep moving forward.
 

Saints Rest

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Can he continue to have press conferences after he retires? Or at least a live web cam of his domestic life.

Linda: Hows Breakfast
BB: Its fine, I mean we will have to see how it goes.
Linda: Any thoughts on dinner?
BB: I am not gonna talk about that now. Its too early. We will have to see how things shake out.
Linda:Well do you want to go out?
BB:look, I addressed that, I have never spoken about dinner at breakfast in the past and dont plan to start now.
BBs Grand kid: Grampa will you push me on the swing?
BB: We will have to see if you earn that.
Steve: Dad can I borrow the boat
BB: Its really not that simple. Alot goes into that decision. We need to see where we are and look at it kinda that way. We wont just decide all of a sudden.
Steve: Well was your Grandchild good while I was gone?
BB: He did good things, but there are things he can work on. He knows that. Its not just him. Linda, You and I all need to do a better job. If we coach him up I expect we will continue to see improvement.
This reminds me of those novelty songs back in the 70's where there would be a mock interview where all the answers would be song snippets.
Mr. Jaws
https://youtu.be/kDNlSpKLEEo
 

BaseballJones

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Much more forthcoming with McGinest: https://www.patriots.com/video/willie-mcginest-goes-one-on-one-with-tom-brady

Not a ton of substance, but it just goes to show Bill is just putting on a facade when dealing with traditional media. I'm sure Romo and the other commentators feel the same way after talking with Bill in production meetings.
Love that interview with Brady. Geez, Willie looks like he could play 15 snaps on D right now. Guy is still totally jacked.

Here's the one with Belichick: https://www.patriots.com/video/bill-belichick-explains-what-he-likes-about-this-year-s-team
 

InstaFace

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Much more forthcoming with McGinest: https://www.patriots.com/video/willie-mcginest-goes-one-on-one-with-tom-brady

Not a ton of substance, but it just goes to show Bill is just putting on a facade when dealing with traditional media. I'm sure Romo and the other commentators feel the same way after talking with Bill in production meetings.
Probably makes a big difference whether the intended delivery platform is Patriots.com, vs another outlet whose interests are not necessarily aligned with whatever paints the Patriots in the best light. Bill's no media executive, but he knows incentives.

Edit: I'll also point out that he doesn't really say anything that I couldn't see him saying in a press conference, he just is nice and respectful because it's Willie, rather than being disdainful. I learned absolutely nothing from those 5 minutes other than hearing his general enthusiasm for coaching as he answered the retirement question.
 
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RedOctober3829

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Jul 19, 2005
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deep inside Guido territory
On @SiriusXMNFL, Bill Belichick had a lot of good things to say about LB Ja’Whaun Bentley and how much he’s looking forward to getting him back on the field this year.

Also on @SiriusXMNFL, Belichick said his involvement with the defense will be more than it has been in past years. Unit doesn’t have an official defensive coordinator.

--Ryan Hannable
 

Cotillion

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Jun 11, 2019
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Nope... I take it back... he says quick... myface,but… lol

so it sounds like Facebook but isn't
 

mostman

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It's beyond cat-and-mouse; at this point we're going to need another metaphor.

It is ironic how, given his placid public demeanor, BB press conferences are so entertaining.
 

DennyDoyle'sBoil

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I think "will it be best for the team to have Antonio play" is actually a really funny way to respond. Some reporters are the mouse. Some play too.
 

Cotillion

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Put this in the game ball thread, but it also belongs here. Especially since I have the exact quote, and not my recollection of hearing it from the radio on the drive home.

Someone asked Bill after the game if it was intentional to get Brown involved early.

“We run the offense,” Belichick said. “We try to throw the ball to guys open. We haven’t changed that in 20 years.”

Read more at: https://nesn.com/2019/09/how-patriots-got-antonio-brown-ready-in-week-before-win-over-dolphins/
 

InstaFace

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No kidding.

Q: When you have four receivers and one running back on the field, how does that put stress on the opposing defense?
BB: Yeah, well it depends on how many defensive backs you have on the field. We were running into the same thing last week with [Kenyan] Drake, this week with [Le'Veon] Bell. It's the same thing. There's really five receivers out there when you have a back like Drake, Bell or [Ty] Montgomery for that matter, who played receiver earlier in his career at Green Bay. So, if you have four defensive backs, you're kind of a guy short. If you have five defensive backs, you can matchup to them but then you have no deep help in kind of blitz-zero coverage. If you have six defensive backs, you can kind of play whatever you want. Zone is zone, so if you want to play man-to-man, you've just got to decide how you want those matchups to go, how long you think you can hold up in them, or play zone and if you feel like you can't matchup then there's a zone option. There's some different options there. It's definitely a problem, it's definitely a problem. If you have five receivers on the field, you generally don't want to put six defensive backs out there until it's third down unless they're true receivers, like when Pittsburgh was using five true wideouts. [Ryan] Switzer kind of played a little bit of running back for them but it's not like having Le'Veon Bell back there, or Drake back there, or somebody like that, so it definitely puts pressure on the defense.

Q: Do you feel like you're seeing more of that?

BB: We see it every day in practice, so we see James White and Rex Burkhead out there, it's the same thing. You have five receivers out there. Those are hard matchups for players who aren't good, experienced coverage players playing at all of the positions because those guys could line up anywhere. It's the same thing with Bell, again, or Drake, or Montgomery – other guys like that. They could be outside in a corner-type alignment or they could be somewhere inside in more of a linebacker or safety-type of coverage area, traditionally. It's definitely a problem. But again, we've seen that every day in practice so that's one of the good things about our offense, is we've been able to – no backs are any more of a problem than these two guys are for us to cover. We've seen plenty of it. It still is a problem but it's not like we don't see it every day in practice.
Football question, football answer.
 

E5 Yaz

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si.com with the unbiased headline:
Bill Belichick Storms Out of Press Conference Over Antonio Brown Questions
 

Granite Sox

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I know many can't stand the way BB handles press conferences, but I happened to see this morning's presser live. He quite clearly set the parameters for what he was willing to discuss, and every question he fielded was outside those parameters. BB didn't storm off. No one should be surprised or have any reasonable quarrel with BB cutting it short. Phil Perry seemed to shrug it off.
 

TheoShmeo

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There's a lot of discussion in the media and tritterverse about Bill's recent conduct. Not answering questions about AB. Death stare to Dana Jacobson. Storming out of press conferences.

I continue to not give a shit about how he conducts himself. I care a lot about the offense and the fact that it was dogshit after the first quarter and a half yesterday. I am not actually worried about it but that's the thing I think about this morning, along with concern about the injuries. That Bill is being Bill is not on my list.

My thinking is as follows:

1. Bill is an extraordinary winner and has a clearly defined method. It would be chutzpa in the extreme for me to second guess how he runs the team and what he shares. I read Holley's book so I know that he has a method, and I know that method works.

2. The idea that Bill owes us anything more than a good coaching/GM effort is in the media's head, not mine.*

3. As to AB, it's pretty obvious to me that they decided to take a chance on an incredible talent, knew it was not without great risk, decided to cut bait when the player crossed the line while on the Pats and moved on. Why anyone needs Bill to connect those dots is beyond me. Is this a penance thing?

4. I don't think it was arrogance to take a shot at AB. It might have been a long shot, but he took a chance. I'm glad he did. Had it worked, it would have been glorious. Imagine being a DC and trying to stop an offense with those three WRs and the other assorted weapons Josh and Tom would have had. Now I get it, some people didn't want that level creep on the team. We can differ on that. But that's not a question of arrogance, it's one of whether you are willing to lie down with bad guys and hope you can keep them in check.

Tara Sullivan's column in today's Globe triggered this post. I know this isn't the media forum but this thread is about, at least in part, how Bill deals with the media.

Last, Bill's stare down of Dana Jacobson wasn't nice but she had to know that asking him about anything other than the Jets immediately before the game was a fool's errand. A locked in guy was at his most locked in.

Really last, even walking out of the press conference was nothing in my eyes. He told the press that he wasn't going to deal with AB questions and after 4-5 of them, he saw that they would persist and didn't plan to ask football related questions so he left. To me, it was more matter of fact than anger, not that I care about what motivated him. The ground rules were set, they crossed them, and he left. Nothing much to see there in my view.

* That is not code for In Bil I Trust with respect to game or personnel decisions. Being a sports fan is about, in part, second guessing decision making. I know that Bill is owed a level of deference there, too, but I am not talking about those kinds of decisions here. I'm talking about how he handles the media and what he reveals generally.
 
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tims4wins

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Jul 15, 2005
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100% in agreement on the media. I couldn’t care less about whether Bill gives a percentage health update on the injury report or his exact explanation for why AB was cut. Answering those types of questions is not in his words in the best interest of the team. So he doesn’t answer them. And I personally don’t care at all.
 

Van Everyman

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The part that makes no sense is that Bill said at the outset that the team and he took these accusations very seriously and would be investigating them. I respect Sullivan’s desire to know more and think the Globe is smart to have an explicitly female perspective in its sports page.

But the “We Need Answers” brigade makes no sense to me. What else was there to say at any point during all of this? That they wanted to know more before they cut him? That at a certain point his current, provable behavior off the field had become a problem and violated the terms of his contract in their eyes?

I get that that might have been nice to hear out of his mouth – but it’s not like he *owes* us that or that we need someone to tell it to us explicitly. These things are obvious.

It’s also a rabbit hole. For instance, there’s also an undercurrent that seems to suggest the Pats should have cut bait with him the minute Taylor went public with her accusations and that the Pats somehow “dragged things out.“ The guy was with the team for 11 days. He played in a single game. With just about any other team, we’d be talking about how they cut bait rather quickly once things went downhill.

The whole thing I’m Bill’s eyes was risk and reward – from what they’ve done about Brown to how they’ve talked about it. You’d think after 20 years people would understand that.
 

jsinger121

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With regards to the death stare it wouldn't surprise me that Bill told Dana Jacobson before the interview that he wasn't going to answer any AB questions yet she still asked one anyways. Could have been the reason for the stare at her.
 

BigJimEd

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Yeah, Pats probably said game related only. Whether both sides agreed to it is a separate question.
Either way, I think way too much is being made of the "stare."