APMost coaches go out of their way to be bland before playing old teams or old friends.
But while Ravens defensive coordinator Dean Pees wouldn’t get into why he left New England, he insisted he wanted to beat them more than others.
“It’s always an emotional day,” Pees said, via Aaron Wilson of the Baltimore Sun. “I’m not going to lie about that and act like it’s just another game. It’s a big game for me. I think I mentioned it once before, it’s kind of like when you go out and you play golf against somebody and you want to win, but when you play your brothers, you really want to win.
“There’s a lot of friends over there on the other sideline, a lot of old colleagues, a lot of players that I coached. So, yeah, sure it’s an emotional game. It always is.”
Pees was Bill Belichick’s defensive coordinator from 2006 to 2009, and left after the Ravens beat the Patriots 33-14 in the playoffs. But he has always denied he was fired, or that medical reasons spurred his move.
He was asked Thursday why he took a step back and accepted the Ravens linebackers coach job (he moved back up to coordinator this year when Chuck Pagano left).
“Personal reasons,” he replied, showing the strong Belichick influence, before saying he had a “great” relationship with his old boss.
“We still speak on occasions when we’re playing a team that’s a common opponent and we aren’t playing each other,” Pees said. “In certain years, we’ll discuss things. It’s a great relationship.”
That doesn’t mean he doesn’t want to stick it to Belichick Sunday night.
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Cant wait to welcome the pats to our stadium, theyll never make it out with the win
Dean Pees was the Patriots linebackers coach and called defensive plays, but didn’t hold the title of Defensive Coordinator.
I mean I think that’s a valid point. When I play Madden online, of course I want to win. When I play my best friend it becomes a “must win” because if I lose, I’m going to hear about it.
If vick put up 371 yards on that subpar defense. My god brady gonna throw for 500…. 9-7 record for you pees. Embrace it brutha!
“Cant wait to welcome the pats to our stadium, theyll never make it out with the win”
Hey ravenator glad you’re here. How’d that loss to the Eagles taste? Told you so pal.
Watched the ray ray special last night. Wow! Wish he was a steeler. Mad props!
Credit to Pees for not speaking ill of his previous team.
Although reporters may try to get coaches to do that, they won’t have luck getting Belichick to say anything bad about Pees either.
Most Patsfans didn’t shed a tear when he moved on, but like players, sometimes coaches are a better fit elsewhere.
Bottom line is there’s nothing wrong with him expressing a desire to show his old team his value.
got to love an honest man. good luck to both teams.
Beaten by Vick? Tom Brady will make Ravens look old and slow. Two Ravens losses in a row coming right up.
Next step to 1 win and 15 losses is loss to Pats