Looking Underneath The Hood: Belichick To Be Featured In NFL Films Documentary

In Boston, Monique Walker reports Patriots coach Bill Belichick "will be featured in a two-part documentary that will air on the NFL Network next month." Belichick became the "first ever coach to be wired for an entire season in 2009 by NFL Films and that footage will be included in a two-part series called 'Bill Belichick: A Football Life,' which will air" Sept. 15 at 9pm ET and Sept. 22 at 10pm. The on- and off-the-field footage "will be a look back at the Patriots 50th Anniversary season, and Belichick's 35th consecutive year in the NFL" (BOSTON GLOBE, 8/30). PRO FOOTBALL TALK's Mike Florio wrote it is "odd that Belichick would agree to do it, given that it's widely assumed that he'd never allow the NFL Films cameras and microphones into training camp for the popular 'Hard Knocks' series on HBO" (PROFOOTBALLTALK.com, 8/29). YAHOO SPORTS' Matthew Darnell wrote, "I find the man to be an interesting figure, partially because he is so guarded about himself and his methods" (SPORTS.YAHOO.com, 8/29).

CANDID CAMERA: Belichick appeared on WEEI-AM's "The Big Show" and discussed the project, saying when NFL Films "came to me about it with my 35th year in the league and the Patriots' 50th anniversary season, we talked about that aspect of history and decided that we would try to accommodate them." Belichick said, "I don’t think I can ever remember one time during the season where I actually consciously thought about it, like, ‘I better not say this,’ or ‘I better not say that.’ I have so much trust in NFL Films and the people down there and what they’ve done, I have the trust and confidence in them to just do what I do and let them present it.” Belichick: "When we did it initially, the thought was that it would be used for another day, that it wasn’t going to be a highlight film of the ’09 season and it wasn’t intended for specific ‘this is what it’s going to be.’ It was, ‘We’ll get some footage from the season,’ and somewhere along the line they felt like they would be able to use it." He added this project will be a "one-time thing." Belichick: "It's really something I don’t have anything to do with or know anything about. I’m a coach, I’m not a film producer” ("The Big Show," WEEI-AM, 8/29).