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For all his obsession with preparation, Belichick knows there are limits. He recently paraphrased former President and five-star general Dwight D. Eisenhower while meeting with reporters.
"That will never steer you wrong," he said. "It's not the same as a battle. Those guys' lives are at stake."
Belichick might be an odd choice to go all Alex Trebek on his players.
"Bill knows everything about a team, from personnel to the coaching staff, the players, everything," McCourty said. "By the end of the week, we usually know it, too."
But his players, like school children crouching in their seats hoping not to be called on, know Belichick's surprise quizzes can keep them from being surprised in games.
And that makes them study and so they'll be better prepared for the next game.
"Heart's pounding,Cheap Adidas NHL Jerseys, palms are sweating," running back Shane Vereen said of younger players' reactions.
And what if you don't answer correctly?
What might an opposing defense do against a certain formation at a particular spot on the field?
In his first week with the Patriots in 2009, Rob Ninkovich was stumped when Bill Belichick surprised him with that question.
The Patriots are preparing for their sixth Super Bowl in 14 years, all under Belichick. They've won three of them.
The coach with all the questions is known for giving non-answers to reporters.
On Thursday, he said, "I don't have an explanation" for the Patriots use of underinflated balls in last Sunday night's 45-7 AFC championship game win over Indianapolis.
"He actually did catch me in the hallway when I was a rookie and he asked me a question a couple of years ago about a play,China NFL Jerseys," third-year linebacker Dont'a Hightower said. "Apparently it was a big play by a big player and I didn't get it. It's kind of frowned upon by all the other guys,China NFL Jerseys, so I learned my lesson then."
"Afterward, he came up to me and he said, 'You should also know their shoe size,'" the defensive end said. "So from then on I made sure I knew every single tight end. Couldn't find the shoe size,Cheap Jerseys China, but I was trying."
"We've all gotten caught," safety Devin McCourty said. "Some of the questions he asks you, you don't even think about it. I mean it usually results in us being very prepared at the end of the week."
They better have the answers for the final test on Feb. 1 in the Super Bowl against the defending champion Seattle Seahawks in Glendale, Arizona.
Now they have more than a week to study, practice, and, perhaps, try to avoid Belichick's questions.
His coach's pop quizzes — in team meetings, passing players in the hallway or anywhere they meet — can be a source of fear.
Professor Belichick questions both veteran stars and young backups. Sometimes he'll ask one player if another's answer is correct.
"I think that puts us all on edge," special teams captain Matthew Slater said. "It's not about embarrassing a guy. It's not about putting a guy on the spot. It's about us being prepared and being ready to go on Sunday."
"We're on to Cincinnati," he said repeatedly after being asked about the team's problems following a 41-14 loss to Kansas City one week before playing the Bengals.
"Preparation is everything until the battle starts, and then it doesn't mean anything," Belichick said. "Then you react to what happens in the game. In his case, what happens in the battle."
FOXBOROUGH, Mass. (AP) — Quick.
"They haven't been strange. They just catch you off guard," wide receiver Brandon LaFell said. "It's usually, 'What did we put in the game plan overnight on Tuesday,Supply NFL Jerseys,' just to see if you looked at the game plan."
So if the Patriots have never seen the opponent's first five plays, they fall back on fundamentals such as tackling,jerseys from china, covering a receiver or filling a gap, McCourty said.
"You've got to," LaFell said, "or you'll have those questions every day."
What about that new play coaches added the previous day?
Who are all the tight ends on the Buffalo Bills? |
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