6 takeaways from final episodes of ‘The Dynasty: New England Patriots’
Patriots players, staff, and ownership all give their perspectives on the crumbling of the Brady-Belichick era in the conclusion of the documentary.
All good things come to an end, and even the most dominant dynasty in NFL history had to crumble eventually.
Through the final two episodes of “The Dynasty: New England Patriots,” viewers got an inside and detailed look at the spiraling relationship of Tom Brady and Bill Belichick. The finale included perspectives of Tom Brady, Bill Belichick, and Robert Kraft of course. But, it also included a wide range of former and current players and staff members, to paint the picture fully.
Here are six takeaways from episodes nine and 10 of “The Dynasty.”
Malcolm Butler’s benching is still a mystery — to everyone.
Malcolm Butler’s benching in Super Bowl 52 remains one of the biggest mysteries in Patriots franchise history. The corner played in 98 percent of New England’s defensive snaps throughout the season, so the decision couldn’t have been based on his performance.
Surprisingly, the documentary wasn’t able to shed new light on the reason for that decision. However, just how clueless every person in the organization is about the benching is almost astonishing.
Devin McCourty, team captain and the defensive anchor for the Patriots at the time, didn’t find out until game time. Then-offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels was asked about it, and said to this day he wasn’t told anything about it. Even Butler himself said he has no idea why he was benched.
The only thing Kraft was told is that there was a non-football issue between Belichick and Butler. And, given how tight to the chest Belichick plays his cards, fans may never find out the exact reason for the decision. Without Butler, the New England defense couldn’t contain the Philadelphia Eagles, and the Patriots lost despite a 500-yard performance from Brady.
Belichick’s letter to Donald Trump didn’t sit well in Pats’ locker room.
Before the 2016 election, Belichick wrote a letter to Trump congratulating him on his campaign. That decision sparked a lot of conversation within the New England locker room, particularly given the hypocrisy of the decision Belichick made.
“Bill always said things like ‘we don’t want to have to be in the media talking about these different things’,” McCourty said. “I had some opinions that I might have wanted to share, but out of respect to the team, I didn’t.”
“I personally thought it was very hypocritical,” fellow captain Matthew Slater added. “The Patriot way, it starts with respecting the men you work alongside with, and trying to put the team first. I mean, that’s the foundation for this place.
“I just don’t think he was connected enough with his players at that time to realize that was going to have an impact on the locker room.”
Patriots like McCourty also voiced displeasure with being labeled “Team Trump” because their three main figureheads — Belichick, Brady, and Kraft — all had ties to the former President. During a 2017 game, the entire team took a knee for the national anthem, pushing back on that label.
Brady and Belichick’s tug-of-war match with Alex Guerrero
Alex Guerrero became something of a chess piece in the match between Brady and Belichick that caught steam in 2017.
Guerrero had been helping with Brady’s sustained success and longevity, and he was everywhere in Foxborough. But, once more Patriots started following Guerrero’s practices, Belichick took exception.
Rob Gronkowski became the domino that tumbled the whole set. He began working with TB12 and stopped doing certain things New England’s training staff required. After that, Belichick flexed his control and banned Guerrero from working with anyone other than Brady inside team facilities. He was also banned from the team plane and sidelines.
“The whole situation, it caused a lot of animosity. I mean it was so stupid because Alex is an amazing guy,” Brady said. “I mean if I look at, there’s no way I play probably 12 years in the NFL without his commitment to me and our team. And then, instead of getting credit for it, he got blamed. And I kept going, ‘What the [expletive] is wrong with you people?’.”
The three-way power struggle wasn’t working, but the on-field results were still positive.
After the 2017 season, it became even more abundantly clear that the story was in its final chapter. During that time, the tension escalated beyond any form of repair. It was unraveling in all directions.
Brady was taking more time to himself and caring less about how Belichick would feel about his actions. Belichick did whatever he needed to do to secure his spot as the alpha in the locker room. And Kraft used his power to keep the relationship as intact as possible, often at the expense of Belichick.
Kraft essentially forced Belichick’s hand in trading quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo, by letting him know he’d never sign off on trading Brady. The owner also brought Guerrero back into the Patriots’ facilities at the request of Brady and much to the disdain of Belichick.
According to the documentary, the relationship spiraled to the point where Belichick and Brady were virtually non-communicative with each other. Despite that, they kept on winning.
“I hoped and believed winning was a special elixir that would help Bill and Tommy’s relationship. But it was still unnatural and uncomfortable,” Kraft said. “Basically it was a silent relationship. Before there had been tension, but now it was just totally dysfunctional.
“To be honest, my head coach is a pain in the tush. But, I was willing to put up with it as long as we won.”
Super Bowl LIII: Bill Belichick’s ‘Mona Lisa’
Perhaps coaching for his job in a strange way unbeknownst to just about everyone — likely including himself — Belichick put together one of the best coaching performances of his career.
That was thanks to a bold choice made by Belichick in the two weeks leading up to Super Bowl LIII. The Patriots essentially threw away their defensive playbook and switched from being a primarily man coverage team to running a zone scheme.
That year’s Los Angeles Rams team struggled more against zone than man. Couple that with the fact that they were certainly ill-prepared for New England’s switch, and the move became pure genius.
During that game, Belichick even turned to one of his players and said, “I can see McVay, it’s definitely [expletive] him up.”
After that Super Bowl, Kraft knew he couldn’t let go of Belichick.
Difficult goodbyes
Just because the writing was on the wall already didn’t make the breakup any easier.
Brady saw unprecedented success in New England, thanks in large part to his mastermind head coach. So, when he left, the decision had an effect on many people within the organization.
In the 2020 offseason, Brady went to Kraft’s home and told him, with tears in his eyes, that he was moving on. The pair called Belichick shortly after, leading to more emotional goodbyes for all three.
However, other players didn’t get that chance for the tear-filled goodbyes. At least, not in advance of the decision going public. Patriots players found out about the news the same way fans did: on the internet. That includes Julian Edelman, who was one of Brady’s best friends and favorite targets in New England.
“I found out Tom was leaving on the bottom ticker of NFL Network,” Edelman recalled. “Yeah. That was a tough one.”
But, as Brady and Belichick both stressed, relationships aren’t ever perfect. They still found a way to be competitive at the highest level together for nearly 20 years. They were both essential to “The Dynasty” in New England.
“Relationships are imperfect. But, I’m very proud of our journey,” Brady said. “It was hard, but it was great.”
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