Belichick Refusing to Explain Who'll Be Coaching His Offense is Him at His Most Diabolical

After avoiding the assembled media at the NFL Combine like the army of Orcs that they are, Bill Belichick arrived at the NFL's Annual League Meeting in Palm Beach this morning and took questions. And after understandably giving the whole subject of Brian Flores' lawsuit a good leaving alone, he was given the chance to clear up the massive confusion around the arrangement of his coaching staff this year. Especially on the offensive side of the ball, now that Josh McDaniels took his talents to Las Vegas. 

And rather cooperate, instead of giving the world a detailed description of everyone's duties, job descriptions and responsibilities, he did the opposite. He leaned into the confusion:

Source - Two Bill Belichick confidants have nebulous titles -- "offensive assistant" Joe Judge and "senior offensive advisor" Matt Patricia -- but it's unclear whether either will call plays for second-year quarterback Mac Jones.

Speaking to reporters Monday at the NFL's Annual League Meeting in Palm Beach, Fla., Belichick said the role of play-caller hasn't officially been determined.

I'm not big on titles," Belichick said, adding that "we don’t have to call any (plays) for a while." ...

When asked specifically how he'll replace McDaniels' void on offense, Belichick highlighted four names: Judge, Patricia, tight ends coach Nick Caley and wide receivers coach Troy Brown. 

"Great to have Joe Judge back and Matt of course," Belichick told our Tom E. Curran. "They're two really good coaches, along with some of the other coaches that we have offensively: Nick Caley, Troy and so forth, guys who were here last year. So, we're working through it the best we can here. ...

"Everybody will have a defined role, like they always do," Belichick said. "The offseason is the offseason. Once we get on the field coaching players and game-planning and things like that, then that'll all work itself out."

Belichick did confirm Patricia, who's in the second year of his second stint with New England after serving as defensive coordinator from 2012 to 2017, has a "broad role" in the organization.

"Very broad," Belichick said. "He does a lot of things. Helps me in a lot of ways."

To put it in graph form, like an organizational flowchart or the FBI laying out the structure of an organized crime family, here's how Belichick wants everyone to view his staff:

And like everything else with this incomparably brilliant polymath, it's no accident. 

I mean, this is some real Sun Tzu, "The whole secret lies in confusing the enemy" caliber thinking. Especially coming from a coach who values the importance of understanding your opponent more than anyone. The stories of Belichick stopping a player randomly as they pass in the hallway to grill him, not only on who the opposing coordinator is but who he's coached with, where he went to school, what he likes to do on 3rd & short and so on, are legendary. This situation allows him to sew the seeds of doubt in anyone trying to scout the 2022 Patriots. 

The league had well over a decade's worth of McDaniels game plans to study. His playbook. His tendencies. Gadget plays. Constraint plays. They don't have 10 seconds of film to study on Joe Judge, Matt Patricia, Nick Caley and Troy Brown combined. How does an opposing coordinator stand before his defense in the meeting room and begin any sentence, "Here's what we expect …" when they all know he's just pulling ideas out of his ass? All it takes is a little confusion. Some hesitation. Some extra time wasted trying to get a handle on what you're planning to give you a competitive advantage. 

I can't help but think of that part in Patton where Old Blood & Guts falls asleep with a copy of Field Marshal Rommel's book on commanding tanks in battle on his chest. And the next time you see him, he's destroying Rommel's forces in North Africa:

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Good luck trying to get a book on Belichick's offense when there is no book on Judge, Patricia, Caley and Brown. And even if there was, you have no idea who'll be holding the play sheet or talking into Mac Jones' helmet. Belichick is not big on titles, but there's one I am big on. And it applies here: 

Diabolical Genius.