The New England Patriots rallied to beat the New York Jets 30-27 on Monday, dooming Gang Green to an 0-9 start. It was yet another twisting of the knife by Belichick's hand, "Even when they're down, we still can't beat them."
But the win wasn't enough for Belichick. In a radio interview on Tuesday, Belichick gave the blade one more turn in recalling his one-day stint as the Jets' head coach before leaving for New England.
“One of the not only most defining, but one of the great moments of my career," Belichick said via USA Today. "That combined with Robert (Kraft) giving me the opportunity to come here, I couldn’t have asked for anything more. That wasn’t a good situation for me, and I didn’t want to be part of it, so I wasn’t."
For those who don't immediately recall the story, Belichick was out of a job after his 5-year stint as the Cleveland Browns head coach ended in 1995. He returned to the employ of his mentor Bill Parcells -- Belichick worked under Parcells from 1983-90, helping the club to two Super Bowls -- who was now the Patriots head coach. The Pats reached the Super Bowl in '96, after which Parcells left for the Jets and Belichick tagged along.
Parcells lasted just three seasons in green, taking the club to the 1998 AFC Championship before resigning following the 1999 season. The Jets immediately named Belichick his successor, and that arrangement lasted for a day before Belichick wrote "I resign as HC of NYJ" on a loose sheet of paper and left for the open head coaching job in New England. Pats owner Robert Kraft sacrificed a first round pick to acquire Belichick.
Since then, not only has Belichick won six Super Bowls and won the title of best head coach in NFL history, he's also gone 32-11 against the Jets, who have employed six different head coaches over his 21-year tenure.
"The other half of that was Robert giving me the opportunity to come here and trading — I mean, he gave up quite a bit to get me to come here. That was a big trade. So I’m very thankful that it worked out. I appreciate all the support from Robert, the Kraft family, the Patriots organization and all the New England fans. I’ll keep trying to do my best for this team and this organization, give them the very best that I can. But I’m very thankful for the opportunity to come here, and I just wasn’t going to stay there in that situation. So it worked out.”
Yeah, safe to say it worked out.