Tom Brady on Bill Belichick: "He's gonna go down as the greatest coach of all time"
BOSTON -- Tom Brady may be finishing his NFL career away from New England, but he still has a whole lot of love for Patriots head coach Bill Belichick.
Brady was heaping praise on his former head coach on Monday night, one day after New England's 22-17 win over the Jets moved Belichick into the No. 2 spot on the NFL's all-time wins list. At 325 wins for his career, Belichick trails only Don Schula (347 career wins) on the list.
After spending 20 years with Belichick, Brady isn't surprised by anything the coach accomplishes.
"A remarkable achievement by him and what he's gone through in his coaching career in as many years as he's been coaching and preparing his teams, he's so deserving of the award," Brady said on his Let's Go! podcast with Jim Gray. "He's been an amazing coach that I got to play for for 20 years. He always has his team prepared. He works incredibly hard and he's incredibly deserving of all the accolades that go along with it. I'm really happy for him and none of his success really surprises me after getting a first-hand view of what he put into it, every week, for 20 years that I was there with him."
Belichick always deflects the praise, crediting his players for all the victories that he's racked up over the years. But Brady said that these career accomplishments do mean a lot to Belichick. Brady also said that Belichick will go down as the "greatest coach of all time."
"He is a historian of the game. I remember when I was there, we talked about Chicago Bears-Green Bay Packers. There were a lot of history lessons he would give the team to give you perspective on the history of football, history of coaching, history of playing, history of rivalries and games and the founding of NFL teams because we all love football," said Brady. "And he's gonna go down as the greatest coach of all time. He's done an incredible job, certainly with the Patriots, and he learned a lot over the years with the Giants, the Jets, the Browns -- his history goes way back.
"You should feel good about those things; it's a lifetime achievement award, as well," Brady added. "He's put a lot into it and he's taught a lot of people the game of football in a very detailed way. He believes in the fundamentals. He believe in techniques. He believes in preparation, hard work, discipline, toughness, all the things that are sustainable over time. They're all great lessons to learn in life, too. He's an amazing coach, and again, I was very lucky to play for him all those years."