It was a major blunder for Davis to want The Patriot Way to be installed for the Raiders.
It is remarkable it worked for the Patriots. It probably does work if you want that kind of culture, but how you start and cultivate that culture requires luck (i.e., you have a Tom Brady or Kobe Bryant that commands respect from other players who see if they’re doing it then they probably should to gain their respect …game knows game).
We now see The Patriot Way is likely to come and go with Belichick …and, at this point, will be seen as the benefactor of Brady (instead of the other way around).
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A guy on the r/nfl subreddit said this
“Bill builds his defensive scheme around the skill set of the players he has. He maximizes their strengths.”
https://www.reddit.com/r/nfl/s/YBgct1djuY
That strikes me as the exact opposite of what Josh McDaniels does on offense
I also wonder if some of it is generational with even Belichick struggling post-Brady and the players that won those Super Bowls. I’m just not sure the super hard coaching, work crazy hours shit flies as much these days. Players are competitive and want to work hard and win of course, but a vibe like we’ve seen since Pierce took over with the basketball hoop in the locker room, players wrestling, cigars after beating a terrible team at home etc. players want some work/life balance, a mix of fun rewards for all the hard work they put in.
Old school guys like Belichick in the NFL, Saban in college can still get by as long as they’re winning big. As we’re seeing with the Patriots decline lately, even those guys can lose it once the winning stops. Also probably a big part of why Belichick’s assistants haven’t done well as head coaches as a whole as they don’t have that history of winning to get buy in and they quickly lose teams when losses pile up (which they almost always will early on as most coaching hires are to a team that’s down/rebuilding) on top of players not having fun with the “Patriot’s Way.” They all have their own flaws, McDaniels especially, but I just don’t think that style is going to fly—especially for a young and/or rebuilding team. Saban’s assistants haven’t done the greatest either, Smart being the notable exception and he runs a much looser ship and that’s probably part of why he’s having bigger success than Saban lately. Also som guys like Kiffin, but hard to count those that spent brief times on Saban’s staff as his guys vs. the longer time assistants like Smart and others.
Brady obviously had a tremendous impact on the success of the franchise, and coupled with his ability to accept heavy levels of scrutiny, it allows others to accept it as well. It sets the tone for everyone when your star player, maybe the best to ever do it, accepts getting his ass busted by the coaches. And then when you win SBs it makes it a really easy pill to swallow.
But even Brady grew tired of it, that’s why he left. It wears on people and it’s just not what most young players are used to. The Patriots have gotten away with it for so long because they had Tom, they won, but it was also understood as soon as guys stepped foot in that building. That comes from years of continuity.
The reason why no other coaches in the Belichick tree have success is because they don’t have the QB talent, and they’re largely taking over bottom feeder teams that bristle at the huge change in coaching style and accountability. The team sucks, so these guys come in and tell them they suck and it causes a fracture in the dynamic of trust within the locker room. If you’re going to be hard on guys you have to have success immediately for guys to buy into it. Or you have to get a lot of guys that are willing to be coached that way, and that’s few and far between. That’s why so many of these coaches try and bring in as many former Patriots as possible, to set the tone.
If all of these guys were given 5 years to build the team in their image then maybe, but even then younger players don’t always take well to that style of coaching. Without the success you get guys complaining, and you can’t have success until you have guys who buy in. It’s an incredibly difficult tightrope to navigate and that’s why Brady was so great, he made it work.
TLDR: Bellichick is the last of his kind as a HC. Most guys don’t like to be coached that hard, and you have to be able to connect with the players to succeed. Brady is unique and made it all work.
I think it worked for the patriots because Tom Brady demanded it. I’d bet if you talked to players from Belichecks earlier teams and early patriots teams, this wasn’t the way.
Move on already
The Patriot way is just do your job. There’s no mystical thing about it. Idk why people keep bringing it up so much lol.
It’s looking more and more like the Patriot Way had a lot to do with Tom Brady. If we had prime Brady, I’m sure we could even win championships through the “Patriot way.” Thankfully we aren’t trying that anymore
Trying to do the same thing with every player is stupid. Some don’t like hard coaching. That’s OK if they are otherwise talented and get the job done. Being a dick to them won’t suddenly fix the problem.
Porn stars, maybe