Sunday was a day of milestones for the New England Patriots, and their head coach, not often a man of many words, was plenty willing to rave about a pair of the players who rose in the history books.
Bill Belichick was among those to reach a high honor with Sunday’s win over the New York Jets, passing George Halas on the all-time wins list for a coach. Having now passed the Bears legend, Belichick is just 22 wins behind Don Shula for a share of most in NFL history.
But he wasn’t alone, as Matthew Slater and Devin McCourty hit milestones of their own. For the longtime special teams captain, it was his 214th NFL game, passing Bruce Armstrong for second-most games played in Patriots history. Now, he only trails Tom Brady (285).
McCourty picked off Zach Wilson twice in the second half, the 32nd and 33rd interceptions of his career. That makes him the NFL leader among active players in interceptions.
Asked about the two captains in his weekly interview on the “Greg Hill Show,” Belichick was not short on praise.
“Those two guys are fantastic leaders, they’re right up there at the top of the best I’ve ever had," Belichick said. "On and off the field they’re unselfish, put the team first, do the right thing, work harder than anybody else, do whatever you ask them to do. You just can’t ask for any more than that.
“They’re tough and dependable and show up every day, show up every week, show up every year as well-prepared as they can possibly be. It’s truly a privilege for me to coach guys like that, and as I said I’d put them right up at the top of leadership, performance, consistency, discipline, and toughness of anybody I’ve coached.”
Slater and McCourty are nearing the end of their respective careers, but suffice to say they’ve made a profound impact on Belichick. That alone shows how indispensible the two veterans have been to the organization.
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