Bill Belichick Displays Unparalleled Postgame Press Conference Performance
FOXBORO (CBS) -- Bill Belichick is not always very talkative with the media. This is not news.
But every now and again, the coach opens up and talks at length about very particular bits of football, whether that be stories of Lawrence Taylor, Harry Carson and Carl Banks, or the evolution of the fullback position, or rants against meteorologists, you never really know what you might get out of Belichick.
But on Thursday night, after his Patriots lost to the Packers 22-11 in their preseason opener, Belichick said as little as possible while still moving his mouth. It was a masterful performance.
Here's a look at the entirety of Belichick's postgame meeting with the media, courtesy of the transcript provided by the team. It is a masterpiece.
BB: All right, well it's pretty obvious tonight we've got a lot of work to do. Played a lot of players, certainly some good things, certainly a lot of things we've got to correct and work on. We'll just get back to work tomorrow on some of the things that obviously we need to do a better job of. I don't think we did anything well enough on offense, defense or special teams really to the level that we need to be at. We'll work on everything and try to keep improving.
Q: How would you evaluate Jimmy Garoppolo? He was sacked seven times.
BB: I don't know. We'll have to look at the film. There are a lot of guys out there. I can't watch them all.
Q: Being the first preseason game, do you move players around to different spots? I saw Duron Harmon was playing some safety and some corner.
BB: He played corner on like the last four plays of the game.
Q: What went into your decision to use Tom Brady tonight to start the game?
BB: We played a lot of players tonight.
Q: Going for two points on the Jonas Gray touchdown, is this going to be something we'll see more of?
BB: I have no idea. It's just the preseason.
Q: Did it seem like Jimmy Garoppolo found the right guy on most plays?
BB: Yeah, we'll go back and look at the tape. I have a hard time sitting here evaluating anybody's play. We've got a lot of guys out there.
Q: Was it a last-minute decision to play Tom Brady?
BB: We played all the guys that could play.
Q: What did you like about the rotations on the defensive line, especially getting a good look at a guy like Jonathan Freeny?
BB: We looked at a lot of players tonight. That's what tonight is for. We saw a lot of players play. So, we'll take a look at the film, evaluate them, and hopefully the next time they get a chance to play, they'll improve and we'll coach them better. That's what these games are for.
Q: You mentioned on Tuesday that tonight is a good night to try to get the football operations smooth. Were you happy with that area tonight?
BB: We work on everything. We need to work on everything.
Q: Were you pleased with your team's pass rush?
BB: Like I said, I think we need to work on everything. There were some things that were good, some things that could be better. We need to work on everything.
Q: By preseason standards, were you happy with this effort?
BB: It's the first preseason game. We've got a lot of work to do. I can't imagine there's any team in the league that doesn't feel that way.
Q: There were 20 guys-plus that didn't dress tonight. At what point does it become more of a worry than an issue?
BB: We play the guys who can play, take a look at them. We got a lot of good reps from a lot of players out there tonight. We got a lot of opportunities to see a lot of people play. So the ones that played, played, and the ones that didn't, maybe we'll get to see them in another game. I don't know – depends on what their situation is.
Q: Are you going to play more zone coverage this year as opposed to last year?
BB: I don't know. It depends on the game. We play both.
Q: Did Jonas Gray do anything different this offseason to improve part of his skill-set or his physical makeup to put himself in a position to compete for a spot?
BB: Yeah, I mean, I think all of the players in the offseason program did things to help themselves improve. That's what the offseason program is for – physical development, technique development, having a better understanding of our system and adjustments that we play against – that kind of thing. That's what everybody does. So, yeah, he did. So did everybody else who was in [the offseason program].
Q: Have you noticed any difference in him – bigger, more powerful, faster?
BB: Yeah, he made improvements in all those areas – improvement in the weight room, improvement in technique on the field. I'd like to think as much time as most guys put into it, in the weight room and practice and OTAs and all that, that they would improve.
Q: Did you get a good look on the touchdown run at all in terms of the blocking? Did it look like Shaq Mason pulled over and helped open that up?
BB: He pulled and sealed inside. There was nobody there. There was no run force. I don't think Jonas got touched.
Q: Is there anything you can learn about offensive line play tonight as opposed to training camp and practice?
BB: Yeah, that's what the games are for is to put it in and play. I think we learned something about everybody that's out there participating tonight. It's an opportunity for all of us to work on whatever our jobs were – coaches, players – whatever it happens to be, trainers, everybody. We're going to play a lot of football games this year. We all need a lot of work on it. Tonight was one step.
Q: On the twist that they ran in front of Tre' Jackson, was that supposed to get picked up a little better?
BB: We'll look at the film. I'm sure there are going to be a lot of corrections on every play.
