There are multiple reasons Bill Belichick is considered one of the best to ever coach in the NFL, and his football IQ is certainly at the top that list. In a recent podcast, former New England Patriots safety Devin McCourty told a crazy story about how Belichick went as far as learning to predict wind pattern.
On Dec. 6, 2010, the Patriots crushed the New York Jets 45-3. That is when McCourty, a rookie at the time, learned to trust Belichick's ideas no matter how unusual they sounded.
"He grabs all the corners, and he grabs me," McCourty said on "This is Football." "He said, 'Hey, running down this sideline, the way the wind pattern is in our stadium going toward the open end, the wind rolls like this. So the ball is going to look like it's going further than it is, but it's going to hit the wind, and it's just gonna drop. So when you're running on this side, make sure you turn around and get your head back.'
"And I remember sitting there like, really, dude? The wind pattern?"
Sure, McCourty was a bit shocked at first, but he listened to Belichick and was pleasantly surprised by the results.
"And sure enough, I get a 'Go' ball that side against Braylon Edwards. I turn and I look back, and I remembered what Bill said," McCourty said. "I turn back, the ball drops right in my lap for an interception. From that point on, there was nothing the guy would tell me where I would be like, nope. I believed in everything. I was drinking the Kool-Aid after that."
Belichick became the head coach for the Patriots in 2000 and led the team to six Super Bowl rings -- the most by a coach in NFL history. This past January, they mutually parted ways after a 4-13 campaign, the worst season of his career.
While he is already likely a future Hall of Famer, it looks like Belichick is not done yet. He was one of the top candidates to take the Atlanta Falcons job earlier this year, and despite not getting that position, he has stuck around the game in a broadcasting role.