Conciliatory remarks from Bill Belichick: The legendary coach speaks about quarterback icon Tom Brady. And surprises with some of his views.

Tom Brady’s departure from the New England Patriots in 2020 caused quite a stir. It raised questions and sparked speculation.

Had the legendary quarterback fallen out with head coach Bill Belichick? What was the state of their relationship? And how could Brady “dare” to switch to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers after two decades of success?

“TB12” did the only right thing by leaving, Belichick says today.

“Tom leaving was absolutely the right decision for him,” Belichick told “Fox News.” The Patriots had already been eliminated in the Wild Card Round of the playoffs the previous season.

The New England Patriots “no longer had a good team”

“We no longer had a good team in 2020,” Belichick clarified. “All the players were gone—Rob Gronkowski, Julian Edelman. A large part of our team had disappeared. Devin McCourty and a few others were still there, but they were also on the verge of leaving. We were simply at the end of our rope.”

Brady then went on to win the Super Bowl in his first season with the Buccaneers. After the 2022 season, he finally ended his legendary career with the Bucs.

Belichick emphasized that he was “happy” for Brady “that things worked out so well in Tampa. He joined a team and won right away. I was happy for him. Because things wouldn’t have gone well for Tom in New England in 2020. I can guarantee that.“

Bill Belichick: High Praise for Tom Brady

Belichick also had high praise for his former quarterback, with whom he won six Super Bowls in New England. They ”learned an enormous amount from each other,“ said the legendary coach: ”Tom understood how defensive coaches look at him or an offense. And I learned what a quarterback can do, what’s difficult, what’s easy, what you see, and what you don’t see.”

Belichick also praised Brady’s leadership style: “Tom wasn’t a dominant personality. He was just a great leader. He always did everything for the team and was extremely ambitious.”