FOXBOROUGH - It's not bad being Bill Belichick, after all.
His team won their first game in nearly a month, upsetting the heavily favored Buffalo Bills, 29-25, at Gillette Stadium Sunday. In doing so, the embattled head coach got his 300th career victory. Oh, and did I mention the report about him getting a contract extension earlier this year? Yeah, it seems like Belichick is still very much in charge.
While far from perfect, something Belichick did mention, the Pats looked like a real, live football team Sunday. Mac Jones largely played with poise and efficiency; the offensive line was able to establish the line of scrimmage, and the defensive front managed to get after Josh Allen with four rushers (at first blush, Christian Barmore was a beast for a second straight week) and the secondary did what they always seem to do against the opposition's top target - make him disappear for stretches. Stefon Diggs finished with six grabs for 58 yards and a critical score but was so frustrated by the game's end he declined to speak with the media. That, after sitting at his locker for nearly 45 minutes.
"A good win for us today. A good team victory," smiled Belichick. "Had a lot of contributions by all three units: offense, defense, and special teams."
The Pats had been outscored 93-20 in their three previous games, all defeats. The 71-year-old coach's grasp on the locker room seemed tenuous at best, already gone at worst. Bad penalties, turnovers, and missed assignments were the norm. If I sound like a broken record, it's because that's what they've been playing for us week after week. Even their lone win prior (over the Jets) was sloppier than a 21-year-old on their first "legal" night out.
But the Pats had life from the opening series, kicking a field goal to grab their first lead in a game since that rainy afternoon in New Jersey. Then, on the Bills' first play, Jabril Peppers picked off Josh Allen, leading to an Ezekiel Elliott touchdown, the team's first points off a turnover all year. You could see the surge in energy, both in the stands and, more importantly, on the field. There was a level of confidence that had been lacking, and that confidence never wavered, even after blowing a 22-10 lead in the fourth quarter.
"It's all about playing for each and for the guy next to you and understanding why," said the previously embattled Mac Jones, who went 25-for-30 and finally had a signature moment (in a good way). "We did that today, and we need to continue to do that every day."
"It came down to the last handful of the plays, and fortunately, we were able to make them," said Belichick. "It was good to have those results."
Sure is. The Pats entered this Bills game at 1-5 for the first time since 1995. But the come-from-behind victory brought Belichick some relief, happiness (he was reasonably personable at the press conference), and to win number 300. Talk about rarified air. Only Hall of Famers Don Shula (328) and George Halas (318) have more victory than the 71-year-old.
"Yeah, congrats to coach. That's cool," said Kendrick Bourne. "It feels good to be a part of the legacy. Just want to do the right thing - avoiding fumbles, avoiding bad plays - and just keep doing the right thing to keep helping him win and win overall."
"I mean, it's great," admitted Belichick after a pause. "I'm really more focused on our team and this year. We'll worry about that later. Thanks."
Belichick is a historian. We know he can go chapter and verse on the single wing, dropkicks, left-footed punters, and Lawrence Taylor. So, of course, this means a ton, another reaffirmation that his way of doing business is, if not the right way for everybody, the right way for him and - essentially - this franchise. But he was also wise at the moment, knowing that no one cares all that much when your team is still dead last in the AFC East and a long way removed from what it was when Tom Brady was his quarterback.
Of course, as this fall has marched toward winter, there has been - fairly - speculation that Belichick is coaching for his job. It wasn't just the start to this year, but the way his team has meandered through the last three-plus seasons: 7-9 in the Covid campaign, a first-round 30-point playoff loss in Buffalo to end 2021-22, and then last season's cluster fudge that started before the first ball was even kicked off (hi, Matt Patricia and Joe Judge) and ended with Nick Folk handling kickoffs in the cold in Buffalo (hi, two kick returns for TDs by Nyheim Hynes).
No one expects Robert Kraft to bounce Belichick in-season. The man has earned the right to at least clean up some of the mess he's created. But it sure seemed like the start was dooming his finish. Then came a report a few hours before kickoff that the coach had received a "lucrative, multi-year contract" this past offseason. Considering there are only three, maybe four people who have been privy to that information over the years - RKK, JKK, Belichick, and his former agent/now advisor, Neil Cornrich - this information must come from one of the two sides. It wouldn't make sense that ownership would put it out there, which would mean it likely came from Bill or one of his lieutenants armed with the info with knowledge that that message would self-destruct in five seconds, Mission Impossible style.
Why would Belichick (presumably) let this become public? A leverage play over the owners? A reminder to his team that he's in charge? Both? Something else? This dime wasn't dropped on a whim. Neither side has ever operated that way, especially regarding this contract. Naturally, Belichick was asked about it in his postgame briefing. It went as expected.
"I never talk about my contract," he said, answering before the question was finished. "Focus on the game; try to focus on Buffalo. Now, I'll focus on Miami. Yeah. You can count on that."
Always with his eyes on the prize. Or so he would have you believe. Meanwhile, who knows how things are going behind the scenes, other than the Krafts' silence and, before today, dissatisfaction with the results (fact, not opinion)? This win helps soothe some of the burn, but make no bones about it: the Pats have dug themselves quite the hole. Still, figure out a way to win at Miami, and there might still be something tangible left to fight for. It was unheard of before kickoff, but now they've given us a week's worth of "maybes," all while uncertainty in the franchise's direction - and who will lead it - remains.