In twelve days, Bill Belichick and Tom Brady will square off as adversaries for the first time. They’ve officially commenced the process of tiptoeing around each other, verbally.
On the latest Let’s Go! podcast, Brady responded to Belichick’s Monday comments on Brady possibly playing until he’s 50.
“I’m sure Tom would know better than anybody, so if anybody can do it it’s him,” Belichick said.
Said Brady: “I’ve always appreciated the encouraging words of Coach Belichick, and it’s served me pretty well.”
It’s hard not to detect a little sarcasm in Brady’s own words, given that Belichick delivered one on his perfunctory, box-checking assessments. The reality is that Belichick knew how to draw the best out of Brady, even if/when that required anything but encouraging words. Many believe Brady ultimately wanted out of New England because he craved more (any) praise and approval from Belichick.
Those words often don’t come from Belichick until after the player’s career is over. As Belichick prepares to face Brady, both will surely be saying all the right things (and saying none of the wrong ones), in order to avoid giving either guy a little extra motivation than they already have.
Already, it’s poised to be one of the biggest regular-season games in years. Neither Belichick nor Brady will do anything to make it any bigger -- not that they really could.