Advertisement

Other Coaches Explain Why 70 Year Old Bill Belichick is Eternally Young and Will Coach Forever

George Gojkovich. Getty Images.

Long before his descendants were running the Detroit Lions into the ground, industrialist Henry Ford said, "Anyone who stops learning is old, whether at 20 or 80. Anyone who keeps learning stays young. The greatest thing in life is to keep your mind young." I mention this because this Saturday, Bill Belichick, who many years ago said he wouldn't be coaching into his 70s the way Marv Levy did, will officially be coaching into his 70s. 

And in regards to that, Peter King addresses the issue of Belichick's age in his current FMIA column. Which I guess can be considered a little strange, given that Belichick is younger than Pete Carroll, and no one makes an issue of how old he is. Maybe because Pete looks much younger, to the point I'm 95% certain he carries the Sorcerer's Stone with him. But regardless, Belichick hitting 70 is a topic of conversation this week, and we're going with it. 

After pointing out that other legends who have breathed the same rarified air as Belichick were all retired at his age, "Red Auerbach coached his last Celtics game at 48 …. Curly Lambeau was done at 55, Chuck Noll at 59, Tom Landry at 64, John Wooden at 64, Don Shula at 65, Scotty Bowman at 68," King talked to a 75 year old Mike Krzyzewski for some perspective on septuagenarian coaching:

Source - “I can’t get into his head,” Mike Krzyzewski said from North Carolina the other day. “But watching him, it’s incredibly interesting. … I really admire him and like him. Because really it’s not about him, it’s about them [the players]. There’s nobody who’s built a better culture in pro sports than him. Right? …

"[H]e’s been able to keep that culture going. There’s a Patriot Way. I totally admire that.” …

“As I got older,” Krzyzewski said, “I allowed more input of expression of teaching from my staff, from the people around me. I was able to see and feel their hunger. I allowed them more opportunity but the person who got more was me. Because I got more of them. … He’s very adaptive. He’s probably learned to use the talents of the people around him even better. … 

“Bill trusts his work. He’s doing what he loves to do. He doesn’t get out of character. I’m here. I’m working. I’m prepared. I never get out of character. I love that about him.” 

If you're even remotely invested in how the Patriots particular brand of sausage is made, this is an interesting take. Even allowing for the fact that Krzyzewski is just pulling opinions out of crack because he's been otherwise engaged all this time, he has walked the path that Belichick is on. And in doing so, he delegated more. Let his assistants take on more responsibility, like in recruiting and so on. And fed off their energy and their drive to succeed, which is typically a young man's game. Like a king giving his princes some duchies of their own to rule over. Which would explain the idea of Matt Patricia and Joe Judge being brought over to the offensive side of the operation. Because they have Belichick's confidence. Both in terms of trust, and in competence, based on several years and thousands of hours spent in meetings with them. The assumption being that they're going to work their asses off, given their recent career failures and this brand new challenge. 

By no means am I suggesting The Hooded One is handing power over to anyone. He's still very much the Logan Roy of this empire, and no young upstart is going to get him to cede control of his creation. But by bringing smart, ambitious brains into the board room with him, he can stay as fully engaged as ever. 

And to that point, someone who knows the inner workings of One Patriots Place infinity times better than Krzyzewski agrees with him:

“If he’s there 10 years from now, it wouldn’t surprise me to see that,” said [Josh] McDaniels, who left this year to take the Raiders head-coaching job.

“He still attacks the job the same now that I saw him attack it when I first started in 2001. Doesn’t matter what part of the year it is. The big thing that Bill has going for him and has always done is he loves all the facets of the football season, whether it’s scouting, preparation for a game, roster evaluation, team-building, developmental parts of the year for the young players. All of those things get weighted the same for him,” McDaniels said.

From McDaniels' lips to God's ears. His comments confirm what I've been saying for a least 10 years now. Any time someone asks if I think he's going to retire any time soon. I say watch this guy in anything he does, and tell me if he strikes you as someone who's bored with his job or tired of the process in any way. From his draft preparation, personally flying all over the country for various Pro Day workouts. To the practice field, still walking around under the blazing sun, spinning his whistle and telling stories about fetching coffee for Ted Marchibroda for 50 bucks a week. To game days, managing the clock, working the officials, kneeling in front of the bench with a whiteboard, going over some minute detail with his defensive line or whomever. Dominating his press conferences and torturing reporters, just for the sport of it. Working with his sons. Developing his next great franchise quarterback. This is a man in full. Someone doing exactly what he wants to be doing, in exactly the right situation to be doing it. And drawing energy from the whole process. Like coaching football is his Picture of Dorian Gray that keeps him in his 20s, even as he enters his 70s. 

So I wouldn't be surprised in the least if he's still here 10 years from now, being master of all he surveys. Even after he passes Don Shula on the all time wins list. We all talk about how Tom Brady is defying age and doing things we thought were impossible as he gets older. What Belichick is doing is every bit as impressive. And don't bet against him still being at it, long after Brady is finally done. Kiss the Rings.