WILL Pats, BELICHICK CHANGE FOR NEWTON?
Former Patriots don’t see him backing down to anyone
Just call him Coddler Bill. The handle, of course, does not compute, if the “Bill” in reference, is Bill Belichick.
For the past two decades in Foxboro, Belichick’s reputation has been quite the opposite of a coach who coddles and pampers his players.
Crusher Bill might be the better nickname, given how he’s never been afraid to rip any player’s performance, deriding stars and backups alike.
And that happens after blowout wins.
Is it possible Cam Newton, who has reportedly been treated with kid gloves during his NFL career, will dodge the crusher and get the coddler? Is the ultra-stern Belichick even capable of coddling?
The subject is of interest, because colleague Andrew Callahan wrote a wonderfully insightful piece last week on Newton through the eyes of some former teammates.
Kyle Love, who played under Belichick in New England, and also played with Newton in Carolina, provided some interesting views and insights. Given his unique perspective of having dealt with both, Love told Callahan he didn’t believe Belichick and Newton would mesh, because Newton isn’t accustomed to handling tough coaching.
“This is just my opinion, but I don’t feel like Cam can take the pressure of coaches talking down about his play,” said Love. “If he had a bad game in Carolina, the coaching staff wouldn’t say much to him because they may have felt he could be a little frail about it or maybe pout. They never really corrected to the point Bill used to correct Tom (Brady).”
But what if Belichick changed? What if he morphed into Coddler Bill, thinking that might get the best out of Newton?
Is that even possible? No chance, says Patriots Hall of Fame safety Rodney Harrison.
“I think a big part of building trust in a relationship is being honest. Coach Belichick will keep it real and Cam will embrace being coached by the greatest to ever do it,” Harrison said via text. “They have a mutual respect for one another and as I’ve said before, this is Cam’s last chance. His career is on the line.”
Belichick has always been a straight-shooter. He is who he is. He might make a few concessions if he feels the need, but hitting the stifle switch if someone messes up just ain’t his style.
He’ll slam Cam, especially if the quarterback provides the ammunition. And, even if Newton doesn’t mess up, Belichick has never been afraid to push anyone’s buttons if it means getting a better performance.
Heath Evans was even more blunt.
A coddler?
“That’s never been the Bill I’ve known,” said Evans, who was with the Patriots from 2005-2008. ”What has always set Bill apart was his demand on his players to mentally win a game before Sunday ever happens. So that will solely be on Cam. But you can bet your bottom dollar that the accountability structure and the demands of what they expect out of Cam, or even (Jarrett) Stidham, that crap ain’t changing, nor should it ever.
“In a world that coddles and babies,” added Evans, “that ain’t ever going to be Bill.”
Maybe Belichick is a softie with his dog, Nike. But with his players, not so much.
“He’s had to adjust to temperament and mentality changes. Some of it is the day and age we live in. It’s different,” said Evans. “But the demands that are there … you don’t create the success they’ve had consistently with the demands changing. And the reason (the Patriots) are set apart, is because his demands are different.
“The Bill I know will quit before he puts his name with players who aren’t physically and mentally tough.”
Evans told a story about the late Junior Seau after he first arrived from San Diego in search of a championship ring. Seau was the sweetest, nicest man away from the football field. He famously called everyone, “Buddy.”
And that was fine with Belichick, until Seau made a mistake. No Buddy talk then.
“Those first couple weeks when Junior was jumping offsides and bouncing around over center and costing the team penalties at practice, Bill was all over him,” said Evans. “I remember Junior standing up in the back of a team meeting room one day, and he was still calling everyone ‘Buddy’ but Bill and his staff still went at him. Seau had never been yelled at. He had never been coached hard. He’d never been chewed out. Well, listen, everyone’s the same.”
Evans certainly wasn’t spared the wrath of the head coach. No one skated from Belichick.
“It was always funny when he’d do it to someone else,” he said. “But we always knew that sucker was coming full circle.”
Looking back, the former Patriots fullback thought Belichick’s rants made complete sense, and were warranted. They also came from a genuine place. It wasn’t fake or put on. The Hoodie wasn’t yelling just to yell. There was a specific purpose, a method to the madness.
While Evans said there was leniency with physical mistakes, “Bill’s head would explode if I made mental errors,” he said. “Because in his mind, there was no place for ever making mental errors.”
Given Belichick’s reputation for tough coaching, Newton could have avoided New England if he thought it he wouldn’t survive, or if badger Belichick would hinder him. Of course, Newton might not have had a job to start the season without the marriage with the Patriots, but likely would have gotten a chance with some other team eventually.
Some believe Newton got exactly what he was looking for — a chance to start, an opportunity to win, and a chance to resurrect his career.
“I think he wants (hardcoaching) because he knows he needs it,” Harrison said of the newest Patriots quarterback. “He’s an open sponge. I think he just wants to learn from the best.”
Evans agreed. He thinks Newton wants to be “driven hard” because he wants to “be truly great.”
“I think Cam’s in for a great year,” said Evans. “I believe he’s going to come in and submit to the authority that Bill is. I believe he’s going to be really challenged by what he
sees the potential of his own ability becoming.”
Before arriving at Gillette, Newton openly wondered how it would go with Belichick during a roundtable discussion with Odell Beckham Jr. On Friday, he implied more was being made out of the subject than needed based on that dialogue.
“Listen, listen,” Newton said during a video conference call. “There’s a lot of things that I say that there’s a perception, but at the end of the day, it’s football. I’ve loved it ever since I’ve been here.
“I’ve been here, going on a week, now and you hear rumors about certain things, but once you finally get settled in on things like that, none of that really matters. It’s just all about finding a way to prove your worth on the team.”
Newton is certainly a unique personality. He’s flamboyant, and seems to love and crave the spotlight. No doubt Belichick got a pretty good read on him from prior coaches, along with his own impressions during the brief courtship prior to signing the quarterback.
Belichick has certainly managed all different types of personalities, be it Tom Brady, Rob Gronkowski, Randy Moss, Matthew Slater, Tedy Bruschi, Seau, etc.
“The greatest ability of Bill?” Evans asked rhetorically. “His uncanny ability to be able read people physically, emotionally … it’s an amazing gift. That lends him to speak into people’s lives, or rip their soul out, if need be. But it’s also a must in the sense of having accountability across the board. If players are treated differently in the sense of expectations, you have no team. You have a bunch of individuals.”
Newton is certainly an individual, but that doesn’t mean he can’t or won’t conform to Belichick’s standards for a team. Already, it seems as if he’s bought in, and is ready to do whatever it takes to be successful in New England. It’s likely during his earlier talks with Belichick, Newton came to some type of understanding for what was expected, and what is ahead.
“There’s not going to be a product put on the field that Bill doesn’t want to stamp his name to,” said Evans. “And so, I just know to produce what I witnessed for four years, and what I’ve seen from a distance since, that’s only done one way. And that’s high demands, high accountability, and Bill and his staff giving the players every resource, every bit of information they need to fulfill those demands.
“With Cam, they’re never going to let or allow mental or physical laziness,” Evans went on. “This is not a place to be thin-skinned and be a dominant NFL quarterback.”
So Coddler Bill? That’s just not happening.