Winning has a tendency to cure all in sports, and the New England Patriots have seemingly done nothing but that over the past 15-plus years. Now that they are heading back to the Super Bowl for the fourth time in five years, it would appear any tension that existed between Tom Brady and Bill Belichick is a distant memory.
Following New England’s overtime win against the Kansas City Chiefs on Sunday, Mike Giardi of NFL Network caught on emotional on-field exchange between Belichick and Brady in which the coach told his 41-year-old quarterback, “I love ya, man.” Brady was asked about the conversation during his weekly appearance on WEEI’s “Mut and Callahan Show” on Monday, and he once again insisted there have never been any real problems between him and Belichick.
“We’ve always gotten along great,” Brady said, as transcribed by ESPN. “We’ve worked together for 19 years. So we’ve had the same goals in mind for 19 years. He’s been just a great, great mentor in my life, a great coach. He’s taught me more than anyone ever could about the game of football. I’ve always just loved playing here, and playing for him. He’s the greatest coach of all time and we’ve just had some incredible moments together.”
There has been a lot of talk about in-fighting with the Patriots over the past year or so, and much of it centers around Brady’s personal trainer and the access he has been granted with the team. Belichick supposedly took some of that away at one point, but there were indications that the issues were worked out early this season.
They may not be best friends, but Brady and Belichick both understand they owe their success to one another. They both love to win, so it’s no surprise they act differently after a win like Sunday’s and a devastating loss like the one they had a year ago in the Super Bowl. Brady and Belichick have both insisted all along that things are fine between them, and their exchange in KC seemingly proves that.
