Colin Cowherd blasts Bill Belichick for continuous failures without Tom Brady - “What is he without Tom Brady?”
One of the biggest debates in the NFL is who made who when talking about Bill Belichick and Tom Brady. Some think that Belichick's coaching made Brady the star quarterback he was, while others feel Brady's talent made Belichick's coaching look far better than it actually was.
In truth, both likely made each other better, which is why they worked so well together as a duo for over two decades. But now, with Tom Brady retired having spent three seasons with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, we are getting a glimpse of what Belichick is like without Brady...and it's not good.
Fox Sports' Colin Cowherd has delved a little deeper and has found that Belichick, without Brady simply doesn't win and has questioned the Patriots' head coach.
Cowherd said on The Herd:
“There's a lot of worship for Bill Belichick, but then we got new information. Brady left, and they're not very good. what really is he without Tom Brady, he doesn't get along with his quarterback. He just made a defensive coordinator, an offensive coordinator a silly move that's tone deaf to offense."
"What is he without Tom Brady? And it's really funny. I don't think most people really talk about it. Belichick’s career is absolutely inarguably tied to one player, Brady. Otherwise 10 years, one playoff win, seven losing seasons… Bill's never really won without Tom Brady, didn't win in Cleveland with all the quarterbacks, didn't win pre-Brady didn't win post-Brady.”
Did Tom Brady mask Belichick's coaching ability?
For some, this rings true, and Cowherd even had the stats to back it up. While in Cleveland, Belichick had a coaching record of 36-44 and one playoff win. In New England before Brady he was 5-11.
Now we look at his record without Brady, and it's 25-25. Yikes.
Of course, it is hard to replace a player who many call the greatest to ever play so naturally, the numbers might be a bit jumbled. But to go from a Hall of Fame level coach to a .500 coach, that is stark.
It is also worth noting that after Tom Brady left, Belichick didn't get another star quarterback (like going from Brett Favre to Aaron Rodgers), instead he got Mac Jones, a developmental player.
The debate will never be won, but with the stats Cowherd is putting out there, could a case be made that Brady made Belichick the coach many think he is?