New England Patriots boss Bill Belichick is having a hard time picking a starting quarterback this season, but he struggled to say goodbye to main man Tom Brady when he left in 2020.
Brady is the most successful player in NFL history, and won six Super Bowl rings with the Patriots before looking for a new challenge in Tampa Bay. After being drafted in 2000 Brady replaced Drew Bledsoe as the starting quarterback in 2001, and the rest as they say is history.
After 20 years with the Patriots, Brady decided to leave the organisation and say goodbye to Belichick, and the legendary coach is yet to put his faith in one quarterback two years on. It was a huge loss for Belichick, and the Patriots coach reportedly rejected the chance to meet Brady for a proper goodbye.
Belichick snubbed a face-to-face meet with Brady at the end of his tenure with the Patriots, and instead opted to share a phone call with the star, according to ESPN. Seth Wickersham's upcoming book, 'It’s Better to be Feared', goes into detail on Brady's departure, and claims that the end of their time together wasn't as amicable as the pair may have liked.
Brady was hoping for a proper goodbye, but Belichick rejected this opportunity and instead phoned the quarterback instead. But although Brady eventually left in 2020, the quarterback was already keen on leaving back in 2017.
According to Wickersham's book, Brady 'didn't want to play for Belichick anymore', and wanted to find a solution to winning elsewhere within the NFL. "Tom Brady had been curious if there was another way of winning," Wickersham writes in the book.
"While nobody was arguing that Bruce Arians was a better coach than Bill Belichick, or even close, the seamlessness of Brady’s proficiency and performance was making his former coach’s methodologies look antiquated, even silly. It was better to be feared — but was it necessary?"
However, it was claimed that there were a number of reasons that Brady left, as trust in the quarterback began to fade as Belichick feared he was nearing the end of his playing days. Brady also didn't feel valued at the Patriots as his views were overlooked, and headed to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, as their organisation fit with his ambitions.
"Brady was tired of taking team-friendly deals with no input into how the money saved was spent — and still wanted a long-term contractual commitment," Wickersham added. "Belichick told associates that every organizational decision now was in support of Brady, geared toward pleasing him and making him successful — and that Robert Kraft meddled with the team, sometimes with opinions, sometimes with restrictive budgets."
Brady left and won the Super Bowl with the Buccaneers, and talk between the quarterback and Belichick have been muted ever since. The Patriots have struggled since his departure, and now Belichick is faced with a problem at quarterback as Mac Jones and Bailey Zappe tussle for the starting role.
Jones has failed to take his chances, and Zappe has shone in the side despite staring the season as their third choice. Fans have been regularly chanting Zappe's name, and Belichick is yet to put his faith in one man.
