Bill Belichick Details the Three Things That Made Tom Brady 'Unbelievably Great'

There was a method to the madness.

Brady and Belichick won six Super Bowl titles together. | Winslow Townson-Imagn Images

We all know of the greatness that was the 2000s New England Patriots. 17 AFC East division titles, nine Super Bowl appearances, and six championships are just the high-level benchmarks that encapsulate what was the most dominant run in NFL history.

Manned by head coach Bill Belichick and quarterback Tom Brady, the Patriots built a dynasty that will be tough to ever match. The two—while also having their differences—worked together to become arguably the greatest to ever do it at each of their respective positions.

In an appearance on Ryan Clark's The Pivot podcast, Belichick, while promoting his new book "The Art of Winning: Lessons from My Life in Football", revealed what he belies were the three things about Brady that made him "truly elite":

1. Not allowing negative plays to happen.
2. Getting the ball into receivers' and running backs' hands to let them make plays.
3. Making great, quick decisions under pressure with "tremendous" ability to see the field.

Here's the full clip in more detail:

Bill Belichick on Tom Brady pic.twitter.com/4As7UMMHxl

— RandomTomBradyHighlights (@TomBradyDaily) May 17, 2025

Pretty cool to hear from Belichick's perspective.

After the two split following the 2019 season, Brady went on to throw for an additional 14,000+ yards and 108 touchdowns in a Buccaneers uniform while winning a seventh Super Bowl title. Belichick, meanwhile, hasn't had as much success. He's currently the head coach at the University of North Carolina, and is dealing with—what he himself would likely term—a distraction in his girlfriend/business manager Jordon Hudson.

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