“He’s just kind of reinvented himself" - NFL execs trust Bill Belichick more than any other coach right now

New England Patriots head coach Bill Belichick will go down as the greatest coach ever in the game of football.

His way of doing things has brought him just about every accolade imaginable. Some thought that was simply because he had Tom Brady. But when the seven-time Super Bowl champion bid farewell to New England, Belichick was left with Cam Newton, who was then succeeded by Mac Jones, the current Patriots quarterback. Despite the changes, Belichick's Patriots lead their division with a 9-5 record and are currently the AFC's number two seed for the playoffs.

This week, NFL.com reporter Tom Pelissero's annual early awards survey was completed by high-ranking executives from 23 NFL teams, including 10 general managers (all of whom were anonymous). As per Pelissero's survey, Bill Belichick received 11 votes for the Coach of the Year award. One AFC executive commented on why the Patriots head coach deserved the award.

“He’s just kind of reinvented himself,” the AFC executive said. “Not the scheme, but whole new free agency (approach), spent all the money, got a rookie quarterback, bunch of new pieces and it’s all kind of come together. Took a year off, and now they’re back. It’s amazing what he’s doing.”

Is Belichick truly the Coach of the Year?

Bill Belichick was voted Coach of the Year in an early poll of NFL executives

Also read: 2021 NFL Playoff Picture Week 16: 5 AFC teams who can finish as the top seed

After what could be described as a rebuilding season last year with Cam Newton, in which the Patriots missed the playoffs for the first time in forever with a 7-9 record, they have come back with a bang thanks to a number of factors.

For one thing, Belichick has picked rookie Mac Jones at quarterback. Jones was deemed the "most NFL ready" out of his draft class, and it has become easy to see why. His command of the offense and his ability to make the right decisions at the right time all point to a young player being coached by one of the best in the business.

What a throw by Mac Jones 🤩🔥 https://t.co/U49zzBqoZF

For another, this year Bill Belichick is back to his best in terms of defense, which remains his specialty and the one thing that most Patriots teams are known for. At the time of writing, Belichick has led the Patriots to first place in the league in scoring defense (16.2 points per game).

Huge sack for the Patriots defense makes this field goal attempt just a bit tougher https://t.co/z9lGQ5ZdBa

Moreover, the Patriots also have 27 takeaways (averaging 1.9 per game) on the season and 33 sacks (14th in the league), which means that Belichick's defense gets after the quarterback and takes the ball away — two key ingredients that make a Super Bowl team.

Considering what Belichick has done with a rookie quarterback along with building one of the best defenses in the league and getting New England to second seed in the AFC, it is safe to say that he certainly is Coach of the Year material.

Also read: NFL Playoff Picture: Colts jump three spots during their bye week, Ravens drop