Boston Coaches Honor Patriots' 'Dean' Belichick

One napkin changed the course of Boston sports history.

Bill Belichick was set to take over the New York Jets' head coaching job at the turn of the century but resigned via doily mere minutes before his introduction. Belichick moved on to the New England Patriots and has been stationed there ever since.

The brief boss of Gang Green's impact on New England sports needs little elaboration: the six Vince Lombardi Trophies at One Patriots Place won under his watch do all the talking. But Belichick's aura has apparently made the 20-plus mile drive up to Boston.

"He’s the dean of coaches here, obviously because of who he is and his career," Boston Red Sox manager Alex Cora said, per Steve Buckley of The Atheltic. "When you win so much, it’s amazing what he does."

Prior to Belichick's arrival, the Boston area had gone nearly two decades with a championship parade, their last celebration being the Boston Celtics' last banner run in the 1986 NBA Finals. But the new century's sports gods have smiled kindly upon Boston's entries in the so-called "Big Four" North American professional leagues.

In addition to Belichick's six, the Celtics (2008) and their icy TD Garden roommates, the Boston Bruins, have respectively earned four-win triumphs in the NBA Finals (2008) and Stanley Cup Final (2011). Belichick's prescience was also apparently enough to exorcise the ghost of the Bambino, as the Red Sox have won four World Series titles since 2000, the most in new-century MLB affairs.

As Belichick prepares to unofficially kickoff his 24th season at the Patriots' helm in their Thursday preseason debut against the Houston Texans (7 p.m. ET, WBZ), Boston brass sang his impact's praises. Most of it centered upon not Belichick's inspirational aura but rather the impact he's left on each man personally.

Bruins head coach Jim Montgomery, the newest addition to the Boston coaching ranks, recalled that the eternally-stoic Belichick reached out to him shortly after he was hired last summer.

"Alex is absolutely right, Bill is the dean," Montgomery said. "You know how I met Bill? He reached out to me.

“I took my sons down to Gillette Stadium, and about a half-hour before kickoff he came out to talk to us. He invited me to their spring camp, and I got to spend an entire day around him and his staff.”

The visit to Foxborough apparently left at least somewhat of an impression: Montgomery's first Bruins group set an NHL record with a 65-12-5 record, setting historic league marks for wins and points (135). Though the Bruins fell to the eventual Eastern Conference champion Florida Panthers in the NHL postseason's opening round, Montgomery won the Jack Adams Award as the league's coach of the year.

Cora had to more or less earn his friendship with Belichick, as one of the rewards behind the Red Sox's most recent World Series run in 2018 was on-field recognition before a Patriots game at Gillette Stadium. Once it was established, however, it has proven ironclad.

“Obviously, we went there after winning the World Series in 2018 and I was able to talk to him a little," Cora recalled. "Since then, I can text him whenever I want, and out of nowhere he’ll text me."

When the offseason of the defending NBA finalist Celtics was thrown into disarray due to the scandal around head coach Ime Udoka, assistant coach Joe Mazzulla was unexpectedly thrust into the top role. Despite the interruption, the Celtics won 57 games and reached the conference final round for the fifth time in the last seven seasons.

The Patriots perhaps partly paced Mazzulla's first year at the helm: head coach-turned-president of basketball operations Brad Stevens constantly advises his assistants to find sources of inspiration beyond the hardwood and Patriots training camp has been one of the most potent locations.

“Joe and (fellow assistant) Tony Dobbins went last year when they were assistant coaches,” Stevens said. “I encourage all our coaches to seek out growth opportunities, and obviously there’s no better growth opportunity than talking to other coaches who have been really successful.”

Belichick is closing in on one of the most valuable records in the coaches' respective realms: with 19 more victories, the long-tenured wearer of New England's top headset will pass Baltimore/Miami head coach Don Shula for the most victories at an NFL helm.

Geoff Magliocchetti is on Twitter @GeoffJMags

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