Bill Belichick: How Well Does New Show Tell Us What's Behind the Hoodie?

Have you ever wondered what New England Patriots head coach Bill Belichick is really like? Have you ever wondered if he's more than just the boring dude with the hoodie who just also happens to be the best coach in the NFL?

Probably not, huh? I, for one, know that I have never wondered about such things, and I doubt whether many people outside of New England ever have.

It is therefore rather curious that NFL Films got the idea to wire Belichick for sound and follow him with cameras during the entire 2009 season. Whether or not the demand for such a telling glimpse of Belichick was there, NFL Films went about making a documentary anyway.

The first part of that documentary, titled "Bill Belichick: A Football Life," will air tonight on the NFL Network at 9:00 p.m. ET.

As for what we can expect to see in our very first look at the man behind the hoodie, the trailer for the series definitely emphasizes that we are going to get know what Belichick is like away from the gridiron. Whether it's joining him on a fishing trip or taking a trip down memory lane to his boyhood bedroom, Bill Belichick the person is going to be as much on display as Bill Belichick the coach. Regardless of how you may feel about him in that latter capacity, it looks like he is, in fact, a regular human being.

But make no mistake, there is going to be plenty of football stuff to be seen as well. Certain members of the football punditry who have already seen the documentary can tell us all about that.

On Wednesday, Michael David Smith of Pro Football Talk published his thoughts on "A Football Life," and he did not hide that he was very pleased with it. Some of the more interesting parts, he says, involve Belichick interacting and talking about rival players:

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"At one point during a Patriots-Ravens game, Baltimore receiver Derrick Mason approaches the New England sideline and says something to Belichick, to which Belichick replies, “Why don’t we talk after the game, alright? Just shut the f–k up.” But with footage from game-planning sessions, viewers can see how much Belichick respects certain opposing players, notably Jets cornerback Darrelle Revis and Ravens safety Ed Reed."

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Smith also notes that the documentary reveals that Belichick holds nothing back when he has a gripe about his own players. For example, he ranted back in 2009 about the lack of work ethic among his wide receivers, a group that at the time included Randy Moss.

Writes Smith:

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"In a moment from 2009 that feels particularly compelling in light of the Patriots’ surprising decision in 2010 to trade Randy Moss, Belichick can be heard complaining to his coaching staff that the team’s wide receivers don’t have a strong enough work ethic. Belichick said he wished his receivers would have taken it upon themselves to stay after practice to do extra work with Tom Brady."

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The documentary isn't all about sentimentality and coaching, though. According to the Journal Sentinel's Bob Wolfley, there are also times when Belichick just plain has some fun:

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"You hear Belichick talking with Patriots fan Jon Bon Jovi at training camp. You hear him ask wide receiver Wes Welker if he knows who Wally Pipp is (Welker doesn’t). You hear him leave a voice mail for Boston Red Sox manager Terry Francona when the Red Sox get in the playoffs."

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Despite all this, I think that original question I was hinting at still stands. Do we really need to know all this?

As far as I'm concerned, the answer is still no. We really don't.

But hey, if you don't want to know more about Bill Belichick, you don't have to watch. Yet after getting a load of all this, I, for one, am willing to admit that there are worse ways to spend a Thursday evening than sitting down on the couch for an inside look at New England's coach.