As if coming back from a 28-3 deficit in Super Bowl LI to defeat the Falcons in the greatest Super Bowl comeback of all time wasn't enough, former New England Patriots head coach Bill Belichick took several digs at Atlanta during his appearance on the "ManningCast'' on "Monday Night Football.'' The Falcons defeated the Philadelphia Eagles, 22-21, but in the meantime caught some strays from "The Hoodie."
Belichick may harbor some resentment towards the Falcons, considering they passed on him for their vacant head coaching gig, going with Raheem Morris instead. He chose to bring up some of the more negative news out of Atlanta this year.
This offseason, the NFL determined that the Falcons "had improper contact" with quarterback Kirk Cousins, wide receiver Darnell Mooney and tight end Charlie Woerner. The team was forced to forfeit a 2025 fifth-round draft pick and pay a $250,000 fine, and general manager Terry Fontenot was fined $50,000.
Belichick managed to bring up the tampering during the broadcast, perhaps with an agenda to call out the team that didn't want to hire him.
"Is this Mooney?" Belichick asked, following a catch by the wide receiver. "Mooney is one of the three free agents they signed illegally -- Mooney, Woerner and of course Cousins, that they contacted early, got fined for, lost a draft choice and all that."
That was far from the only negative comment about Atlanta. After Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts converted a first down on his feet on 3rd-and-11, Belichick called out the Falcons for their tackling, or as he would say, lack thereof.
"Can't tackle," Belichick said, speaking about Atlanta's defense. "... Honestly, it was the same issue last week; they didn't tackle very well against Pittsburgh."
Belichick also recalled a memory from Super Bowl LI, mentioning Falcons owner Arthur Blank going down to the sideline prematurely ahead of the Patriots historic comeback.
"I remember Blank down on the sideline in the fourth quarter, celebrating when they were ahead," Belichick said. "He's a pretty good dresser. Arthur always looks sharp, but he was down there on the sideline, and we were getting beat, and I was like, Jesus."
The Patriots and Belichick parted ways this offseason, leaving the NFL without the future Hall of Fame head coach for the first time in decades. He is now working in the broadcasting world, after not landing a coaching job.