Even if Bill Belichick isn’t in the room, his presence seems to hover over those who have worked with him in the past.
That was the case for former New England Patriots quarterback and current Minnesota Vikings head coach Kevin O’Connell, who got introduced to coffee because of the legendary coach.
The former NFL quarterback was a member of the Patriots in the 2008 season. He made his NFL debut on September 2008. His career with the organization did not last long, as he was waived by the team in August 2009.
O’Connell recalled a time when he wanted to take a nap in meetings, but the thought of Belichick catching him dozing off was enough for him to form a coffee habit.
“I never had coffee in college, and this was my first team meeting. I moved from San Diego to Foxborough,” O’Connell told Vikings Entertainment Network’s Tatum Everett. “Early one morning, I felt kind of, my eyes feel a little heavy, and I’m sitting next to Brady and all these guys.
“Coach Belichick’s in the front of the room. I just pictured him catching my eyes getting heavy. I walked out of there as fast as I could and filled up a cup of coffee and dumped about six creams in there because I didn’t know any better.”
Bill Belichick's team meetings helped get Kevin O'Connell into coffee.
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It’s been said that Belichick was known to play mind games with opponents, as a means of getting an edge. It turns out his players had Belichick in the back of their minds as well, even for something as simple as a team meeting.
It just goes to show the influence that Belichick had from the practice field to the meeting room.
