Former Patriots' safety gives take on Brady/Belichick debate

The Patriots dynasty is one of if not the greatest in the history of sports. The discussions surrounding the dynasty have been about credit, specifically with Tom Brady and Bill Belichick. Each side has its supporters, but some people think it’s equal. For example, on Thursday morning, former Patriots safety Devin McCourty said on Good Morning Football that both deserve the same credit.

The main point of McCourty’s argument was that Brady is the greatest player ever, but he needed the titles in New England. He also went on to say that Brady might have seen in Tampa what it was like to not have Belichick criticizing and motivating players every day. McCourty has a point, but ultimately I think there is a clear winner in this debate.

Brady is the one that deserves more credit for the dynasty because he covered up all of Belichick's flaws. Belichick was able to get away with how hard he was as a coach because he had Brady. More importantly, Brady succeeded more away from Belichick. The fact that Brady won a Super Bowl without Belichick and Belichick has only made the playoffs twice without him is telling. 

Over the last three years, I think it’s become clear that Brady deserves more credit because Belichick has not won at a high rate. With only one playoff appearance, Belichick has failed to move on without Brady. Belichick has continued to run the team the way he did with Brady, and it hasn’t worked. Ultimately, I think McCourty is just trying to show support for the coach that drafted him and molded him into a great player, but I think he got this one wrong.

It will be interesting to see if this sparks a discussion among other former Patriots players of if Brady or Belichick gives their view.