The world gets turned upside down every now and then. You realize that the apocalypse is near when “We’re on to Cincinnati” becomes “We’re on to television.”
What’s next, a “Boom!?” from Bill Belichick, or a turducken play-by-play on Thanksgiving? A telestrator perhaps?
There have been a number of former NFL coaches who were always good bets to transition to television: first and foremost John Madden, Mike Ditka, Bill Parcells, Herm Edwards, Rex Ryan …
But Bill Belichick?
And yet there he is — chopping it up on the “ManningCast,” and with Pat McAfee, on “Inside the NFL,” breaking down the game on “The Breakdown” with Peyton Manning — biding time before returning to the sidelines to try to break Don Shula’s record for career coaching wins.
And guess what: Liberated from the paranoia over revealing even the most minute competitive disadvantage, the guy is entertaining and informative talking shop.
For some perspective, Serby Says sought out legendary broadcaster Bob Costas, who was Madden’s CBS audition partner in 1979.
“He was uncertain of himself in two respects,” Costas recalled. “Uncertain that he’d be any good, but also uncertain that this is what he wanted to do even if he was pretty good. So for him, it wasn’t like, ‘I’m embarking on the next chapter of my life,’ he was just kind of taking a flyer.”
The audition was not aired.
“More so than even in a regular game, I was just trying to give him the nuts and bolts of play-by-play and then get out of the way or set him up with a question,” Costas said. “He was very appreciative. It was like he was deferring to me, and I was like a 26-year-old kid that had only done maybe a half-dozen network games in my life. … He was, even then, larger than life. Whatever the template was, he wasn’t trying to copy it. And so the thing that struck me even then was he was completely himself.”
Belichick, for better or for worse, has never been anything other than himself.
“I don’t know Bill that well … just said hello to him a few times,” Costas said, “but what I’ve observed, is that when he’s engaged in a subject — some people are surprised that they’re not getting the terse press conference Bill Belichick — but there was a purpose in that for him. And he just didn’t want anything to get in the way of what his focus was. The quintessential thing is, ‘We’re on to Cincinnati,’ like 10 times after a bad loss. But remember when he did the 100 greatest players [series] with Rich Eisen and Cris Collinsworth? He wasn’t just good on that, he was ***** great *****. He has such a great sense of the game’s history, and such a great appreciation of it. When he’s in those studio situations and he doesn’t have a game to prepare for, I think he’s outstanding, or at least potentially outstanding.”
Belichick won a Sports Emmy as an analyst for NFL Network’s “NFL 100 All-Time Team” series.
Nevertheless, TV Belichick will seem like the “Twilight Zone” for some.
Serby Says asked former Giants defensive end George Martin if he could ever have envisioned Belichick, Parcells’ defensive coordinator, on television.
“Never in a million years,” Martin said, and laughed.
“Bill to me is certainly in the top five NFL coaches that have ever coached. But as far as Bill’s overall embrace of communication? Ah … no,” he said with a laugh. “And that’s not a knock on him, it’s just that I’ve only known Bill to be one-dimensional. He’s exceptional, he’s brilliant, he’s the crème de la crème at that. So I have never seen a broader personality of Bill. I don’t know if it ever existed to be honest with you.”
Some Giants called Belichick “Sominex.”
“Bill was cursed with having a very monotone voice that just hovers at the same frequency across the room,” Martin said. “And that, to people who were tired or exhausted, that is a sleeping aid. … That is a recipe for sleep. Yeah he’d get angry once in a while and he’d fluctuate his voice, but normally, he’s like he’s whispering you a bedtime melody.”
But if you are a football junkie, you will be hanging on his every word.
“His knowledge is unparalleled, without question,” Martin said. “He will give you the in-depth, the ins and outs, and he will give you the alterations soups to nuts.
“But it’s like going and having a $500 steak on a paper plate.”
ESPN NFL national reporter Mike Reiss covered the entirety of Belichick’s 24-year Patriots career.
“My reaction is that it’s really smart, ’cause it keeps himself front and center. … He wants to coach again,” Reiss said. “And then in terms of how he’s presenting himself, we always knew there was this other side of him, it’s just a matter of when he wanted to show it.”
Reiss laughed when asked to characterize a Belichick press conference.
“Which day?” he said. “If it was a Wednesday, he was going to walk out and he was going to give you a 5-7 minute scouting report on the other team with no notes. If it was a Friday, and the hay was in the barn and he was in a good mood, we might have some good back and forth.
“Back in the early, early, early days, like early 2000s, I remember he used to do trivia with us. So much of it was contingent on his mood that day. Like, if he just wanted nothing to do with it, which was often, it was like an exercise in running out the clock.”
Reiss referenced a Belichick appearance on a recent McAfee Show.
“He was talking about halftime adjustments, and how he doesn’t believe in halftime adjustments, you can’t wait till halftime to make adjustments,” Reiss said. “I can’t tell you how many times we heard that through press conferences. We actually are hearing a lot of the stuff he would say, but I think it’s new for most of the country, because that was sort of in our little bubble.”
Former Giants linebacker Gary Reasons recalls a Belichick transformation through the years.
“He wasn’t a man of many words early on,” Reasons said, “but as the relationships grew with us, he’s pretty quick-witted, he’s got a good sense of humor, it’s a very dry sense of humor. … I do think that he can communicate on a very, very good level with a lot of people. For him, he’ll find a way to get though to people, and that’s just who he is. He’ll find a way to make his message plausible for just about any audience.
“I think it’s cool. When I saw that he was doing a little bit of broadcast work, I kind of scratched my head, too, and I said, hmmm. But you know what? When I look at it, I think it can be OK. It’s going to be entertaining.”
Keep up with the most important sports news
Sign up for Starting Lineup for the biggest stories.
Thanks for signing up
Reasons watched Belichick on the “ManningCast” and gave him a favorable review.
“It’s not what you would think that he would gravitate towards,” Reasons said, “because from the media side, when they asked him questions, he is purposely as a head football coach in protection mode. He’s not in the information mode of giving information away. … There’s more to Bill Belichick than what you see on those harsh interviews after a tough loss or something.”
Oh, Belichick and Raiders defensive end Maxx Crosby are hosting “Let’s Go” on SiriusXM’s Mad Dog Sports Radio on Mondays.
“This is his personality, but what he gave for 30-something years was a stoic guy publicly about business,” former Giants legend Carl Banks said. “This is how he would talk to his players. He’s in his comfort zone. He flows when he’s watching film or watching games. That’s who he is.”
TV Belichick: No ***** boom! ***** But no bust either.
