As Steve Belichick rises higher in the coaching rankings, the skepticism will always be there. Bill Belichick’s eldest son seemed to take on more responsibilities with the New England Patriots in 2019 after the team’s defensive play-caller, Brian Flores, left to take the head coaching job for the Miami Dolphins. Steve was still, by title, the safeties coach. But he was clearly doing more than that, with a headset and a play-sheet on the sideline during games.
Still, the Patriots didn’t name a defensive coordinator. They wouldn’t even say who was calling plays: Bill, Steve or linebackers coach Jerod Mayo.
With Steve’s rising star, there’s bound to be doubters who think his successes are largely due to his father. You know: the guy who has eight Super Bowl wins, six as the head coach of the New England Patriots.
But Steve hasn’t exactly run from his father’s imposing shadow. In fact he went to work for the Patriots right out of college, and has been a dutiful assistant — putting his head down and doing his job — since 2012. Bill Belichick protects every part of his program, sharing as little as possible in the way of detail, and his son has been no different.
So I set out to write a profile of Steve for Patriots Wire, and asked him how he feels about managing his father’s legacy.
“It’s hard living in the shadow, but I just try to be myself. I can’t control what you think. I can’t control what anybody else thinks or whose shadow I’m living in or why I got this job. I just try and go about my business. It’s hard to ignore sometimes,” Steve said. “I think I’m just doing myself a disservice if I start thinking about that stuff. I just try and do my thing. I know that that’s going to be coming. It’s going to be coming my whole life. I can’t really run from it.”
In an email exchange, I asked Bill how he feels about Steve following in his footsteps.
“I am so proud of Steve as a coach and as a man,” Bill told me. “He has a lifetime of knowledge about football and the NFL and has used his experiences to teach the lessons he has learned. Steve has been a tremendous help to me in evaluating and making decisions for our team.”
The Patriots defense was superb during the 2019 regular season, when it allowed the fewest yards and points in the league. New England also had the most interceptions (25) and forced the fifth-most fumbles (26), and the Patriots’ yards allowed per play were tied for lowest in the league.
Bill Belichick wouldn’t answer my question about whether he plans to promote Steve, who just turned 33, to defensive coordinator. That’s to be expected. But it’s clear that Steve is rising to prominence as the Patriots dynasty moves into the post-Tom Brady era. He already looks and sounds just like his father; whether his football acumen matches up remains to be seen.
Head over to Patriots Wire to read more about how Steve Belichick went from studying NFL games with his grandfather to the lacrosse field at Rutgers and, eventually, into the family business.
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