Morning Sports Update

Bill Belichick remains unconcerned about weather conditions for Patriots practices

"If it rains, it rains."

Bill Belichick weather
Bill Belichick at a Patriots practice on Aug. 3, 2021. AP Photo / Steven Senne

By Hayden Bird

3 minutes to read

The Red Sox ended a five-game losing streak with a 4-1 win over the Tigers on Wednesday night.

Also on Wednesday, the Revolution, missing playmaker Carles Gil due to injury, were held to a 0-0 draw by Nashville SC at Gillette Stadium.

At the Tokyo Olympics, the U.S. women’s soccer team secured the bronze medal by defeating Australia 4-3 in an exciting back-and-forth clash. Carli Lloyd and Megan Rapinoe each scored twice:

Elsewhere at the Games, U.S. men’s basketball advanced to the gold medal game by defeating Australia, 97-78. The Americans will face France in the final on Friday at 10:30 p.m. ET, a rematch of the two teams’ opener (which France won).

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And U.S. baseball also advanced to the gold medal game, defeating Korea on Thursday, 7-2. The gold medal game will feature the U.S. against Japan on Saturday.

Bill Belichick’s reaction to the latest weather-related question: Patriots coach Bill Belichick has had an interesting relationship with weather forecasts over the years.

In 2014, Belichick remarked that forecasts for New England weather were, in his experience, “almost always wrong.”

In 2019, he complained that despite the prediction of a “monsoon” for a game against the Giants, “like usual, there was not one drop of rain.”

So when he was asked about the potential of practicing in rainy, adverse conditions on Thursday, Belichick was unsurprisingly unmoved.

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“Whatever it is, it is,” Belichick began. “I can’t control that. Looks like the field will be wet.

“If it rains, it rains,” Belichick pointed out. “If it doesn’t, it doesn’t. If it’s hot, it’s hot. If it’s not, then that’s what it is. It’s really nothing’s changed, it’s just good fundamentals, good ball security, being aware of the conditions that we’re in can be significant. A little more focus on looking the ball in and so forth, but ultimately the game’s played against a competitor. So we’re not out there playing the weather.”

“If all we do is worry about keeping our hands dry, then [there’s] probably not going to be a lot of good results,” Belichick added.

Ultimately, Belichick’s own weather prediction proved true: The field was indeed wet.

More from Boston.com:

There is actual (preseason) football happening tonight: The Cowboys face the Steelers in the Hall of Fame game at 8 p.m.

The U.S. men’s relay team misses the Olympic finals: Despite consistently producing a deep level of talent that compares favorably with virtually every other nation in the world, the U.S. men’s 4×100 relay team has not medaled at an Olympics since 2004 (having been stripped of a 2012 silver medal following Tyson Gay’s positive drug test).

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The streak will not be broken at the Tokyo Games, as the Americans finished sixth in the semifinal heat. It was not for lack of talent, but instead poor handoffs and coordination.

In the aftermath, U.S. Olympic legend Carl Lewis — who still shares an Olympic record in the event set with his teammates at the 1992 Barcelona Olympics — didn’t hold back in his criticism:

On this day: In 2012, Usain Bolt defended his 100-meter gold medal despite a furious charge from U.S. sprinter Justin Gatlin.

Daily highlight: At the 2012 Olympics, Megan Rapinoe notched an “Olimpico” goal (scoring directly off of a corner kick). On Thursday, she did it again at the Olympics to help the U.S. women win a bronze medal.

Hayden Bird

Sports Staff

Hayden Bird is a sports staff writer for Boston.com, where he has worked since 2016. He covers all things sports in New England.

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