Something’s brewing in New England between Patriots head coach Bill Belichick and his former defensive coordinator and current New York Jets head coach Eric Mangini.
In a story posted online by the New York Post, Belichick refuses to even mention Mangini’s name while talking about the Jets-Patriots came this Sunday in New England. When asked about Mangini, Belichick will only respond by talking about the Jets as a team.
Asked what kind of job Mangini has done with the Jets, Belichick said, “I think the Jets are a very good football team. They’re a very talented team, and they’re a very explosive team in all three phases of the game. They play that way on a weekly basis.”
Asked if he sees any particular stamp that Mangini has put on the Jets in his first season as a head coach, Belichick said, “The Jets have been a strong, competitive football team ever since I’ve been here.”
According to the article, the two coaches completely avoided each other before and after the first meeting between these two teams in September. People close to the to situation think it’s because Belichick isn’t a huge fan of New York owner Woody Johnson and therefore told Mangini to pass on the Jets offer and wait for a better one to come along. Apparently, Belichick isn’t too thrilled that Mangini went ahead and took the job even though Belichick told him it wasn’t a great situation.
If this is true (and as of right now, there are no public facts that says it is), I think Belichick should respect the solid job Mangini has done thus far with the Jets. Nobody has the right to tell a grown man what job he should or shouldn’t go after. Maybe Mangini passes that offer up and another one never comes along? But who knows – maybe there is more to the story than meets the eye.
