The Patriots’ Secret Is Simpler Than You Might Think
Was all the success thanks to Brady or Belichick? Why do we have to choose?
Each week while Man in the Arena airs on ESPN+, we’ll dedicate these Friday newsletters to examining the latest episode of the series, trying to understand what each of Tom Brady’s Super Bowl seasons can teach us about the nature of competition. First up: Brady’s unlikely 2001 championship.
When a two-time Pro Bowler becomes a free agent in the NFL, teams fly him first class to their city, they take him to nice dinners, and show him the gated communities where he could buy a house. In other words, they roll out the red carpet.
That was the position Rodney Harrison found himself before the 2003 NFL season. The Raiders toured him around their facilities. The Broncos offered him millions per year.
And then Bill Belichick called. He didn’t fly Harrison to Foxboro. He didn’t take him out to dinner. He just called Harrison and said that the Patriots wanted him. A year prior, Harrison ran through warm-ups with the Chargers before their game against the Patriots, and his teammate ran over the middle during a drill, Harrison hit him so hard that his helmet flew off. Belichick had been watching the drill; he was studying the opponent’s warm ups. On the call a year later, Belichick told Harrison how impressed he was by that play.
“You remember that?” said Harrison, and then he told his agent to work out a deal. If the coach was that detail oriented, he was someone that Harrison wanted to play for. The Patriots offered more than a million less than the Broncos. Harrison took the deal anyway.
So begins the story of the 2003 Patriots, detailed in episode two of our series Man in the Arena, out now on ESPN+. Tom Brady calls this era the “growth stage part of my career,” a period in which he’s learning, soaking up the knowledge, habits, and skills to become the GOAT. But, as Brady is quick to point out, he didn’t take those strides alone.
“You have to put people around you that are going to help you be the best you can be,” says Brady. Harrison was one of those guys, constantly pushing and demanding toughness. And then there was Bill Belichick, who would meet with Brady every week to dissect the opposing team’s defense—but really to teach his young quarterback all the intricacies of the game of football.
“Even today I look at some of these young players, and they’re like, ‘What do you think of this guy in his third year or fourth year?’” says Brady. “In my mind I’m thinking, ‘Okay, he’s talented, but who’s going to teach him how to evolve and grow?’”
Brady or Belichick? For years, it was one of the great sports bar debates: Who deserves the credit for the Patriots dynasty? Yet now, as we watch Brady succeed in Tampa and Belichick tutor a new quarterback in Mac Jones, it’s clear that it’s not as simple as one or the other. Both made each other better. They pushed one another. They inspired each other to work harder, to think deeper, to demand more. In a word, they were a team. Maybe the secret to success is as simple as that.
From everybody at Religion of Sports: we hope you and your family had a most wonderful Thanksgiving and that your team won the Turkey Bowl. Thanks for reading.
Now Streaming: Man In The Arena Podcast
In addition to the docuseries, we’re also producing a Man in the Arena podcast, in which Gotham Chopra explores two decades of Brady’s career through the eyes of the fans and haters, those inside and outside of the arena. Each episode grapples with the ways in which Brady has altered our understanding of sports. In episode two, Gotham explores how Brady redefined what it means to be a Boston sports fan. What does it mean to claim a player as “ours”? With help from fans and journalists like ESPN’s Seth Wickersham, Gotham sets out to find an answer.
So Let It Be Written...
How to Jump Out of an Airplane—at Age 90
By Jason Gay • The Wall Street Journal
Pat Morehead has skydived (skydove?) nearly 7,000 times in his life. So how else would you expect him to spend his 90th birthday?
Ed Southern goes deep on Southern college football (and basketball) in his new book
By Tommy Tomlinson • Southbound
A rare podcast appearance in this section—but Tommy Tomlinson’s interview with Ed Southern about his new book Fight Song is so compelling, I had to recommend it. Southern set out to write an essay about being an ever-disappointed Wake Forest fan who married to an Alabama diehard. Instead, he wrote an examination of why college sports are so important to the South.
Process of Making Bowling Ball. Robot Mass Production Technology Is Amazing
By All process of world
We featured one podcast in this section...why not one video? Getting crazy this week. Ever wondered how a bowling ball gets made?
Getty
A Little Love For the Other Co-Founder
We know it’s been a lot of Brady love over here recently, but he’s not the only ROS co-founder who’s been in the news recently. Michael Strahan had a big week too. The Hall of Fame defensive lineman will soon be—no joke—launching into space aboard Jeff Bezos’ Blue Origin rocket on December 9. It’s exciting, but the big question around the office is: Will Michael make it back in time for the ROS holiday party?
In other news, this Sunday, the New York Giants will retire Strahan’s number 92 at a halftime ceremony. It’s a fitting honor for the defensive end who led the G-Men to a Super Bowl and the franchise’s all-time leader in sacks. From everybody here at ROS: congratulations, Michael—and please don’t forget about us when you’re riding through the cosmos.
Adam Bettcher / Getty Images
A Picture Is Worth a Thousand Words
Minnesota Vikings kicker Greg Joseph celebrates after hitting a game-winning 29-yard field goal last week against the Green Bay Packers.
So Let It Be Written...
My Brief (Doomed) Surfing Days (2017)
By Dave Hickey • The Paris Review
Dave Hickey, the brilliant and trailblazing art critic passed away earlier this month. Some years ago, as part of his essay collection Perfect Wave, he wrote one of the most touching essays about the power of sports that I’ve read. When Hickey and his family moved to Los Angeles when he was a kid, Hickey felt like an outsider. Then he tried surfing and things went...well, you’ll have to read to find out.
Last Word
“We don’t fight for Tom Brady if Tom thinks he’s the star. If he makes it all about him. No one cared who got the credit…all we cared about was each other and winning football games.”
– Rodney Harrison