Patriots players remain grateful to Bill Belichick after tough season

FOXBOROUGH – Pharaoh Brown has seen this situation play out before.

In 2017, he was on a 6-10 Oakland Raiders team that saw head coach Jack Del Rio get fired after the season. In 2019, he was on the Cleveland Browns and that 6-10 season ended with head coach Freddie Kitchens being fired. In 2020, he was on a Houston Texans team that saw Bill O’Brien get fired after a 0-4 start. The next season, he was still there when Houston finished 4-13 and fired head coach David Culley.

During those difficult seasons, Brown said it was easy to tell which head coaches were rattled by the media and how distracting it got when they started to act differently during times of adversity.

This 2023 NFL season may very well end with head coach Bill Belichick being let go from the Patriots after finishing with a 4-13 record. Brown noted that Belichick, unlike previous head coaches, never changed this season.

That’s one reason why the veteran tight end appreciates his time with arguably the greatest head coach in NFL history.

“He just has a good way of being level-headed in the highs and the lows, the good things and the bad things. I can respect that just being able to say who he is – even through this year being one of the rougher years, he never changed,” Brown said. “He never changed the process. I’ve been in some bad situations, some bad seasons and you see the coaching staffs, with the media talking about they might get fired and then, they start changing stuff and start acting differently. You can respect men who stick to who they are. That goes a long way. Great coach.”

If Belichick’s time with the Patriots is over after 24 years, it certainly didn’t end like anyone hoped it would. On Sunday, the Patriots lost to the New York Jets, finishing with their worst record since the 1992 season.

Before the clock hit zero, several Jets players were making snow angels. It was an embarrassing ending to a historic run by one of the greatest in football history. Although this 2023 season was a failure, players say they’ll exit this season being grateful to have been coached by Belichick.

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Belichick left his mark on newcomers

Ezekiel Elliott will look back on his time in New England fondly despite the poor results.

The reason is Belichick.

“I feel very lucky. I feel very lucky to have played for the best coach ever,” Elliott said. “You can tell just by the way he attacks every day. By the way, he demands excellence from everyone and everything he does from top to bottom. He loves to coach. He’s going to coach you up. I’m just very appreciative to be able to play for him.”

Elliott was one of the most high-profile free agent signings for the Patriots this season. He was part of a new group that also included Mike Gesicki. The veteran tight end, who’s a free agent, said he enjoyed playing for Belichick so much that he hopes to be back with the Patriots head coach.

“Incredible. Hopefully, there’s more time to make more memories in the future with that,” Gesicki said. “In terms of this year, it was awesome. It was incredible. Great experience. He was everything that you could imagine and more.”

This season, the Patriots also added several new players to the roster who only received a small taste of what it was like to be coached by Belichick. That included cornerback Marco Wilson, who came to the Patriots on Dec. 28, and cornerback Alex Austin, who signed on Nov. 2.

Both defensive backs said it was an honor to be in the same building.

“Man, looking back it’s been a blessing,” said Austin. “One of the greatest coaches of all time. Just learned every day from him, sitting in the meeting rooms, getting every coaching point. It’s been a blessing to have been taking coaching points from the greatest coaching points ever.”

“It was amazing, honestly,” added Wilson. “That was the main thing I was excited about when I came out here. He’s a hell of a coach. The best coach in the NFL in history, honestly. It’s been amazing to have a coach with that type of knowledge, that type of experience. You really feel like you can learn and do things that will make you successful.”

Belichick’s humor surprised players

In the past, it’s been said that players don’t have fun in New England. Although that’s been disputed by many former players, it’s also something that was on the mind of Gesicki when he signed with the Patriots this offseason.

That’s why he was so surprised to learn that Belichick has a dry-wit sense of humor that often has his players cracking up. Gesicki discovered that players could have fun playing for the Patriots – even in a difficult season.

“You guys see him at the press conferences, where he’s just answering the questions, but he does have personality. It was cool to see that,” Gesicki said. “He jokes around. You hear all the nonsense, where it’s like ‘no fun,’ but that’s not what it is. It’s a lot of fun and I made a lot of good memories.”

“He’s got a sense of humor,” added Wilson. “He’ll crack a joke every now and then. That’s the funny part about him.”

On Sunday, following their loss to the Jets, players said they’ll leave this season with good memories of Belichick. Another reason is his sense of humor. Considering that Belichick often goes viral for his non-answers, players came away surprised by just how often they found themselves laughing at their head coach.

“I was expecting a great coach and that’s what he was, but I didn’t expect him to be as sarcastic and funny with the way he coaches,” said Elliott. “He’s going to get on you, but he’ll build you up at the same time. That’s what we all need and want as football players.”

“I think that surprised me, too – his sense of humor,” added Austin. “He’s a guy who’s for the players as well. As long as you love football and show up to work every day, I feel like he’s a great coach.”

Players leave disappointed

The 2023 season didn’t go as anyone hoped inside Gillette Stadium.

The coaching staff and front office were confident that this year’s team would be more competitive than the 2022 season. As disappointing as that 8-9 year was, it paled in comparison to what happened this fall.

On Monday, Belichick is expected to meet with owner Robert Kraft to discuss his future with the franchise. There are people inside Gillette Stadium bracing for major change.

For the players in the locker room, it’s disappointing.

“I ain’t really like the flack he’s been getting. It’s up to us to execute,” safety Jabrill Peppers said. “When the plays show up, you have to execute. You can’t put that on coaches. From man to man, we know we didn’t do what we had to do this year. That didn’t mean we didn’t work hard. That didn’t mean we didn’t come in week in and week out expecting and playing to win. We just didn’t execute and the ball didn’t roll our way. We have to own that.”

When the game ended on Sunday, several players found themselves reflecting on the season and what it was like to have been coached by Belichick.

One of those players was Wilson. The linebacker had one of the best seasons of his career in 2023. He said he took a seat after the game was over and thought about how lucky he was when it hit him that he played for Nick Saban at Alabama and then Belichick with the Patriots.

“It’s been great. It’s been bittersweet. Just after the game, I took some time to sit by myself for a minute to reflect on the year,” Wilson said. “It’s been amazing to have played under coach Belichick, one of the greatest coaches to ever coach the game at this level. it’s always dope when you get a chance to play for the greatest college coach and arguably one of the best NFL coaches as well.”

The Patriots loss on Sunday snapped a 15-game win streak against the Jets. The season ended with the most losses for a Patriots team since 1992. This year’s team also locked in a top-3 pick in the 2024 NFL Draft.

As horrible as the results were, players still left Gillette Stadium grateful for their head coach in what might have been his final game with the Patriots.

“It’s been amazing. Arguably one of the greatest coaches to have ever done it,” Peppers said. “I’ve learned so much from him. He pushed me in ways I haven’t been pushed before. I’m just mad we couldn’t get a W for him.”