Patriots' Bill Belichick Treated Tom Brady Like 20-Year-Old Kid, Alex Guerrero Says

Alex Guerrero, Tom Brady's personal trainer, says New England Patriots head coach Bill Belichick tried to "treat [Brady] like that 20-year-old kid that he drafted" toward the end of Brady's Patriots tenure, contributing to the fracturing of their relationship.

Guerrero told Karen Guregian of the Boston Herald that Belichick refused to recognize Brady's evolution: 

"The interesting thing I think there — and this is just me, an outsider looking in — it was like Bill never really ... I think his emotions or feelings never evolved with age. I think in time, with Tom, as Tom got into his late 30s or early 40s, I think Bill was still trying to treat him like that 20-year-old kid that he drafted. And all the players, I think, realized Tom was different.

"He's older, so he should be treated differently. And all the players, none of them would have cared that he was treated differently. I think that was such a Bill thing. He never evolved. So you can't treat someone who's in his 40s like they're 20. It doesn't work."

Brady spent his first 20 NFL seasons in New England with Belichick, emerging from an unheralded sixth-round pick to the most accomplished quarterback in NFL history. The relationship between the two appeared to be one of mutual admiration and unprecedented stability but began to sour over his final few seasons with the team.

Brady's increasing independence regarding his training—with Guerrero's presence being a major factor was perhaps the biggest sticking point. Seth Wickersham of ESPN reported Belichick grew frustrated that some members of the Patriots began using Brady's TB12 facilities and taking the advice of Guerrero over the team training staff.

Belichick went as far as to ban Guerrero from being at team facilities, though that was later changed. Brady also became disillusioned at the fact the Patriots would not give him a long-term commitment as he looked to meet his goal of playing until age 45. 

The future Hall of Famer admitted part of the reasons he left New England was to see if he could win out of Belichick's shadow. 

The egalitarian approach to coaching has made Belichick the most successful NFL coach in history, but we work in a modern era where the entire locker room knows how much power and how important a superstar quarterback can be. If Guerrero's version of events is to be believed, Belichick's rigidness with his philosophy may have ultimately cost the Patriots another championship.