Fifteen years ago, Pete Carroll was fired
from the Patriots, thus paving the way for Bill Belicheck to take over.
Belicheck was a Bill Parcels disciple who had resigned as the head
coaching job with the Jets after he was handpicked to succeed his
mentor. It was unimaginable that Belicheck could achieve such success.
He joined forces with Tom Brady, who was actually a replacement for the
former franchise quarterback Drew Bledsoe.
Bill Belicheck
was known as a superior defensive coordinator. Under his tutelage the
New York Giants were very successful in the 1980’s winning two Super
Bowls; however in his first tenure as a head coach with the Cleveland
Browns he was not successful and subsequently fired. With the Patriots
he has made six Super Bowl appearances with four victories in the past
fifteen years. He and Tom Brady, are by far the most successful coach
quarterback tandem in modern football history.
Pete
Carroll took a different path with NFL success. He too held various
defensive coordinator and head coaching positions in the NFL. After an
unsuccessful stent with the Patriots he landed a job at USC. He achieved
meteoric success at southern California before being involved in a
scandal with boosters and athletes receiving improper benefits. As a
result of the scandal the Trojans had to vacate their 2005 national
championship and Reggie Bush was forced to relinquish his Heisman
trophy. Amidst allegations Pete Carroll decided to resign from USC and
return to the NFL.
No one really expected much from
Carroll in the NFL. It was thought that being a successful college
coach could not translate into being a successful NFL coach. His first
year he lead the Seahawks to a division title and a playoff win over the
then defending Super Bowl champions, the New Orleans Saints. Great
draft picks have paved the way for franchise success during Carroll’s
tenure, with a vast majority of players being lower round draft picks
and undrafted free agents.
The quarterbacks of the two
teams have taken similar paths down the road to NFL prominence. Tom
Brady was a sixth round, 199 overall pick in 2000 from the University of
Michigan. He was marginal at best. No one expected him to be a started
in the NFL. He was to be a serviceable back up at best. It wasn’t until
the third game of the 2001-2002 seasons when the Patriots starter was
knocked virtually unconscious, and sustained serious internal injuries,
that Brady received his opportunity to become a starter. Drew Bledsoe
never started another game for the Patriots. It was not a popular
decision but winning cures all.
In contrast Russell Wilson
was a third round draft pick who was expected to compete for the second
string quarterback position in Seattle. Matt Flynn who had just signed
a very lucrative multi-year deal was anticipated to be the starter,
later losing his position to Wilson in training camp and subsequently
traded to Oakland. An important lesson to up and coming players: It
doesn’t matter when you were drafted or how much money you make, someone
with nothing to lose can take your position if they are determined
enough and given the right opportunity. By Taurus A. White 2/2/15
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