Patriots QBs had great nickname for Bill O’Brien

Alabama Offensive Coordinator Bill O’Brien during warm ups before the 2021 College Football Playoff Semifinal game at the 86th Cotton Bowl in AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas Friday, Dec. 31, 2021. Credit: Gary Cosby Jr./USA TODAY NETWORK

Bill O’Brien has always had a fiery personality. His hot-headed ways were on display back in 2011 during his time with the New England Patriots. Fans may be able to recall a screaming match between he and quarterback Tom Brady that quickly went viral.

Brady dismissed the verbal altercation at the time and that was par for the course. Patriots players recognized that O’Brien would fly off the handle from time to time and they accepted it. But not without having a little fun at his expense.

Brady and fellow Patriots quarterback, Brian Hoyer, gave O’Brien a fitting nickname due to his temper. They called him “teapot” and Hoyer even purchased a literal teapot that would serve as a historical record of O’Brien’s blow-ups.

“Basically, any time we felt it was justified, we’d put it on the teapot like it was the Stanley Cup,” Hoyer once told MassLive. “I brought a teapot in one day. Tom and I thought it would be funny to just keep adding to the story. At a certain point, I started writing them down in my notebook. Finally, when we brought the teapot in, we started wrapping them around and eventually it was pretty full.”

Brady and Hoyer would decide what went on and into the teapot but on occasion, O’Brien would object.

“Billy would always say, ‘That doesn’t qualify,'” Hoyer said. “Tom and I would be like, ‘It definitely qualifies.’ Definitely some good times, it was pretty fun.”

O’Brien could return to the Patriots in 2023 as their offensive coordinator and that would make for some interesting viewing. Much like Brady before him, current Patriots quarterback Mac Jones is a pretty fiery guy himself. There would no doubt be some sideline blowups and reason for the teapot’s return.