Bill Belichick Deemed The Best Executive In The NFL

Rotoworld’s Patrick Daugherty released his annual NFL executive rankings yesterday, and once again, Bill Belichick was at the top of the list. The Patriots don’t have a GM, as Belichick acts as the man in control for most player operations.

Here is what Daugherty had to say on Belichick:

"Bill Belichick’s blind spots as a personnel man are well known. The greatest football mind of the 21st century can’t draft wide receivers or cornerbacks to save his life. But when Belichick looks in the rear-view mirror, the only object closer than it appears is his fourth Super Bowl title. Even the best have weaknesses, but no one in today’s NFL can match Belichick’s strengths. Polishing his fourth Lombardi, Belichick didn’t get sentimental. He passed on a bidding war for 30-year-old Darrelle Revis, and one-year-too-early’d instead of one-year-too-late’d 33-year-old nose tackle Vince Wilfork. Popular sentiment would have allowed for a victory lap in New England, but Belichick knows there’s no such thing. If you don’t stay ahead of the curve in the salary-cap era NFL, you’re going to slam into it. No one understands this better than Belichick."

I think Daugherty is right on the money with his analysis. Obviously Belichick isn’t perfect, and every single GM has problems, but overall, they don’t get any better than Belichick. In the salary cap era, every year he fields a championship-caliber team, and he always is prepared. He knows that value in the draft, and building a deep roster is more important than obtaining stars, and even when he does sign a star, he knows when to let them go (Revis, Moss, etc.)

This article will undoubtedly bring up the whole “Brady vs. Belichick” debate, so let me just say this: I think Brady is the best quarterback of all time, and Belichick is the greatest coach of all time. They have each helped each other get to this point, and while one may carry the other a bit, it shouldn’t take away from both of their accomplishments.

The bottom line: Daugherty is right. Belichick is the best executive in the NFL today.