The Pats' Coaching Staff Provides Key Advantage

It is nearly impossible to evaluate single members of the Patriots' coaching staff, because the organization itself is monolithic—despite being divided into units, the team moves as one to a singular, well defined goal.

Beyond that, the Pats seem determined to keep individual roles nebulous. When assistant coaches move on (Eric Mangini, Romeo Crennel, Charlie Weiss and, most recently, Josh McDanels), another coach steps up from the ranks and the team seems to continue unaffected.

True, the style of the Patriots' play has evolved over the years, but those changes have been dictated by personnel, not personal philosophy.

Those in high coaching positions are nearly always promoted from within the organization (defensive coordinator Dean Pees was formerly the linebackers coach, assistant head coach/offensive line coach Dante Scarnecchia was once a special teams coach), making it difficult to gauge individual contributions.

The one member of the staff we do know something about is Bill Belichick, and he is often intent on remaining an enigma. With the recent firing of Mike Shanahan, though, Belichick has become the premier X's and O's coach in the NFL.

Acclaimed sportswriter David Halberstam's book, "Education of a Coach," presents an excellent profile of the oft reclusive coach, tracing his beginnings as the son of a coach to his assistant coaching tenure, his disastrous tenure as head coach of the Browns and his resurrection in New England.

One thing that becomes evident upon examination of Belichick is the fact that he has put his stamp on every facet of the Patriots organization. Although well known as a defensive strategist, Belichick has, on several occasions, stepped in to guide the offense.

Belichick is well known for his unconventional coaching moves. He, like mentor Bill Parcells, will often attempt fourth and short conversions, a tactic that reveals his faith in his offense as well as his knowledge that a short conversion is more likely to lead to a better outcome than punting the ball.

He pays meticulous attention to field position, once even taking an intentional safety against the Broncos to improve position. That move ended up winning the game—had he punted, the Broncos would've been much more likely to score and the Pats much less likely to come back.

Belichick's defensive acumen is most evident in Super Bowls XXV (as defensive coordinator for the Giants) and XXXVI. In those games, Belichick stymied two of the most successful offenses in league history (the Bills with their famed "No-Huddle Offense" and the "Greatest Show on Turf" Rams) through intensive scheming.

In the much celebrated win against the Rams, Belichick instructed his players to hit Marshall Faulk on every play, noting that Faulk was the conduit through which their offense ran. By hitting Faulk, Belichick threw off the strict rhythm necessary to run such a complex offense.

Belichick, though, is by no means infallible. One notable example of this is in Super Bowl XLII, when he was unable to make adjustments to stop the Giants' defensive line, which ran roughshod over Tom Brady the entire game.

It can be argued that, had Belichick employed countermeasures to the rush (renewed focus on the running game, shorter drops, etc.), the Patriots might have won that game.

However, given Belichick's history of success with the franchise, it is hard to criticize specific decisions. In short, Belichick gives his team a chance to win almost every game, an advantage many teams in the league lack.