New England Patriots head coach Bill Belichick has revealed his 2003 roster was when he realised he had a leading roster - despite already winning Super Bowl XXXVI two years prior.
Belichick was hired as the coach of the Pats back in 2000 having impressed owner Robert Kraft as assistant head coach in 1996. Upon arriving at the AFC East franchise, Belichick revealed it was clear the roster needed a major overhaul that would take multiple seasons to be the team he wanted.
It was a similar situation to his tenure with the Cleveland Browns, who he took over in 1991 and didn’t qualify for the postseason until 1994. However, the emergence of Tom Brady and a dominant defence allowed New England to go on a playoff run and stun the St. Louis Rams in Super Bowl XXXVI.
Belichick - who has been in charge of the franchise for 23 years - granted some insight into how he helped forge the Patriots dynasty that came to define the NFL for two decades. He suggested it was only in the 2003 season when he was content with the strength of New England’s roster, despite surprisingly winning it all against the Rams.
“When the opportunity came in 2000, even though this team was nowhere near the team that we left in ’96, it had declined quite a bit, there were still a few pillars here that we could build with,” Belichick told The 33rd Team. “And I’d say by ’03 - even though we won in ’01 - by ’03 this was a pretty good football team in all three phases of the game.
“It kind of took the same basic four-year window that it took in Cleveland. Again, we were fortunate to win in ’01, but I’d say by ’03, ’04, we had one of the better teams in the league.”
The 2001 season was Belichick’s second year in charge of the Patriots. Starting quarterback Drew Bledsoe went down with a horrific injury in Week 2 against the New York Jets, opening the door for sophomore Brady to take the reins.
Despite recovering from his injury, Bledsoe was unable to regain his starting position for the remainder of the season as Brady thrived. Brady ultimately led the Patriots to their first Super Bowl title at the end of the 2001 campaign, remarkably kickstarting an unparalleled era of dominance by the franchise with the GOAT leading the way.
However, Belichick believes the team in his fourth and fifth seasons at the helm were constructed more closely to his vision. The Pats went 14-2 in both 2003 and 2004, winning successive Super Bowls against the Carolina Panthers and Philadelphia Eagles respectively. New England remain the last franchise to win back-to-back Super Bowls.
The Pats dynasty - fuelled by the trifecta of Brady, Belichick and Kraft - is regarded as one of the greatest in sports history. New England reached the Super Bowl on nine occasions, winning six championships during that period as well as 16 AFC East division titles.
Famously, no NFL coach demands more of his players than defensive mastermind Belichick. His no-nonsense, business-like method meshed well with Brady’s unrelenting dedication to his craft, creating the most successful quarterback-head coach tandem in NFL history.
The 71-year-old is largely considered the greatest coach in NFL history. Across his illustrious career as head coach, Belichick has 329 victories (including playoffs) which places him second for the most in NFL history behind Don Shula’s record of 347.
