Bill Belichick the Comedian: How Coach Gets Involved in Patriots' Rookie Show

"As we’ve seen, still successful, still the greatest all-time coach, still wins, still Super Bowls.”

One of the oldest traditions that still takes place in the NFL during training camp are rookie team shows, in which first-year players perform some kind of embarrassing act in front of their teammates, whether it be telling jokes or singing their college's fight song. These can be seen by the public in HBO's "Hard Knocks" series. 

Even though the ship is run differently in New England, the Patriots also hold their own rookie shows during the summer, as newly retired tight end Benjamin Watson explained on Tuesday while on FS1's "First Things First". While Watson said the gist of the rookie shows has remained the same over the years, there is one person in particular that has become much more involved in the event since Watson's first stint with New England. That person would be head coach Bill Belichick. 

"I don't know how long he's been doing this, because it was new to me since this was my first year back after a decade, we divided into teams and Coach Belichick actually participated in a rookie team show,” Watson said. “He was on the stage, telling jokes, making fun of other people, making fun of himself, having a great time. 

"It doesn’t mean that he still doesn’t demand the utmost respect. It doesn’t mean that doesn’t hold the standard very, very high when it came to how we performed on the field. But there was a sense of humor there and kind of a let-your-hair-down-type deal that I really appreciated that I know wasn’t the case before. As we’ve seen, still successful, still the greatest all-time coach, still wins, still Super Bowls.”

Bill Belichick the comedian? 🎤@BenjaminSWatson recalls the time Belichick told jokes on stage during the Patriots 'rookie' team show: pic.twitter.com/9X6DE3Di1t

— First Things First (@FTFonFS1) April 14, 2020

Watson's story may come as a surprise to many people. As a coach that comes off as very bland and not much fun during press conferences, Belichick seemingly shows a very fun-loving, comedic side of his personality to players and coaches within the confines of Gillette Stadium. 

And as Watson mentioned, the shift in attitude from their head coach hasn't stopped the Patriots from winning football games at the highest level. So keep at it, coach.