A common talking point with pundits (eww..pundits) this football season so far is that Russell Wilson is playing himself out of the Hall of fame. While I personally disagree on grounds that he was never all that good, that isn’t my main focus today. Nope, I’m going to focus on mumbling grey hoodie man; Billy B.
I used to compare Billy B to that of Erik Spoelstra of the Miami Heat. However, upon closer examination I realize how wrong I was to do so. My logic at the time was that both are ringless without their respective GOATs. While this is true, Spoelstra’s resume contains something that Billy B’s does not; a trip to the championship sans The Goat. That’s right; Spoelstra coached Jimmy Butler and a relatively inexperienced Miami roster to the 2020 Finals. Billy B has yet to even make it to the second round of the playoffs without Brady. Call Billy B a wagon, because he was absolutely carried by the GOAT.
Billy B Doesn’t Understand Offense
But, let’s go in chronological order with Billy B’s career as a head coach. His first coaching gig happened to be in the city of literal hell for NFL coaches; Cleveland. Billy B took over in 1991, and inherited franchise quarterback Bernie Kosar. So naturally, Billy B was able to get the absolute most out of such a star with some juice left in the tank? Wrong! He basically ran poor ol’ Bernie into the ground with an unimpressive sub-20 TD season.
Billy B lasted a few more seasons in Cleveland, ruining even more quarterbacks along the way. Former Heisman Trophy winner Vinny Testaverde also had sub-20 TD seasons under Billy B’s guidance. I know, I know; “But Dan, the rules and offenses are different now, you can’t examine the past through a modern lens!” Fine, but you know what does translate across eras? Wins and losses; and Billy B had his share of the latter while in Cleveland.
Billy B inherited Drew Bledsoe upon arriving to New England in 2000. Bledsoe, who was the Patriot’s franchise quarterback at the time and went on to have respectable statistical seasons in Buffalo and Dallas post-Billy B, floundered in one complete season under the grey hoodie. Billy B doesn’t understand offense.
But let’s zoom out and look at Billy B’s career as a head coach even with Brady. For all of his lauding for being the GOAT, Brady only had a single 5000 yard season under Billy B; and no, it wasn’t 2007. Billy B also “coached” The GOAT to having only one 40+ touchdown season during their entire shared time in New England. It’s simple; Billy B doesn’t understand offense.
But then, the GOAT left in free agency, thus starting Billy B’s downfall. First, he had former Heisman Trophy winner, top overall pick, and league MVP Cam Newton as the Patriots signal caller in the Year of the ChinaVirus. And what did Billy B accomplish? The Patriots missed the playoffs as Cam Newton had an abysmal season.
Then, Billy B had Mac Jones for two years. Back at Bama, Billy B’s BOI, Nick Saban coached Mac Jones from holding Tua’s clipboard to a Heisman finalist and national champion turned first round pick. And what did Billy B get out of this raw talent? A single playoff appearance; a first round exit. Mac Jones carried that Belichick-induced damage through his time in Jacksonville. Jones is now in the middle of a career revival in San Francisco (at the time of writing) under Kyle Shanahan’s tutelage. Billy B doesn’t understand offense.
Billy B got rightfully shit-canned and spent a year away from the game, thus making press conferences much more interesting in his absence. Then, Billy B decided to don the grey hoodie once more; this time at UNC. Billy B has continued to show that he doesn’t understand offense. Is it too late for Michael Jordan to change sports again?
Defensive Guru?
“But Dan! Billy B didn’t make his name as an offensive mastermind. Defense was his bread-and-butter!” Fine, let’s look at this a little more closely. Again, rewinding to his Cleveland days, fresh off of two Super Bowl wins as a defensive coordinator for the Giants in the 80’s, Billy B was in prime position to turn Cleveland into an absolute shredder where opposing running backs go to get clobbered. Yeah…that never happened. Instead, Billy B’s defense typically gave up 100 yards per game on the ground.
The Patriots went from having a pretty good defense in 2021, and then fell off a cliff. Billy B’s final year in New England featured a defense that was mid-at-best. Currently at UNC, the Tar Heels have given up at least 34 points four times so far this season; there’s still a month left to the 2025 campaign. For whatever defensive acuity he once had, the game has simply passed him by .Even his girlfriend sees it.
Billy B: Sans Brady
Alright, I wont mince words; Billy B’s two separate dynasties (because dynasties don’t get pause buttons) in the early 2000’s and the late 2010’s were impressive. Only a fool denies that. However, one needs to examine his career as a whole Billy B had a losing record in Cleveland; I can hear the pitchforks now. “Dan, everyone has a losing record in Cleveland!” if he were the coaching GOAT, then he would’ve been the exception.
But more than Cleveland, look at his post-Brady time in New England. He had a losing record while the GOAT soaked up the limelight in Tampa. Toss in a mediocre 2-2 record while Brady was suspended in 2016, and we have a slop-body of work. The only quarterback Billy B has meaningfully impacted was Matt Cassel, but that’s merely a rule-proving exception of Billy B can’t develop quarterbacks.
“But Dan, a coach does not simply lose a perennial star quarterback and pick up the pieces seamlessly.” aaaaand that is where you’re wrong, friend. Andy Reid was able to coach Donovan McNabb from a prospect who was booed on draft night into a six-time Pro Bowler. He also turned around Alex Smith’s career from Joe Theisman-esque injury to a multiple-time Pro Bowl selection. Let’s not forget that he turned Mahomes from a glued-to-the-bench rookie into a generational talent with three rings in five years. Let’s face it; Billy B was carried by Brady.
Billy B is coaching himself out of the Hall of Fame right in front of our eyes..
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