“I think he’s an incredible coach. He’s, in my opinion, the best coach in the history of football.”

Tom Brady and Bill Belichick helped orchestrate a 20-year dynasty in New England. (Photo by Maddie Meyer/Getty Images)

Bill Belichick put together perhaps the most impressive coaching resume in NFL history during his 24 seasons with the Patriots.

But with New England at the bottom of the AFC standings with a 2-8 record, the narrative currently swirling about a losing campaign for the Patriots in 2023 revolves around Belichick’s long-term future in Foxborough.

Several factors have played a role in the Patriots’ current cellar status, with injuries all over the depth chart, a porous offensive line and Mac Jones’ struggles hampering New England’s ability to pile up wins.

But Belichick’s own roster construction, a coaching carousel around Jones and years of terrible drafting have also hampered New England’s ability to write a fruitful next chapter in the post-Brady era.

But if you ask Tom Brady, Belichick’s command of the sideline remains as strong as it was during the Patriots’ 20-year dynasty.

And even with New England’s subpar results thus far in 2023, the sight of Belichick coaching elsewhere (or hanging up the headset for good) would be a grim sight for the legendary quarterback.

“I think he’s an incredible coach. He is, in my opinion, the greatest coach in the history of the game,” Brady said of Belichick Monday during an appearance on the “Stephen A. Smith Show” on YouTube. “So I mean, I don’t know, the thought of him not being in New England is hard for me to think about.

“I think he… he prepares the team very well. And ultimately, you need a lot of people around you to succeed. For an organization to be successful, a lot has to be arranged. I don’t think he probably coaches much differently now than when we were undefeated in 2007. I am sure he is preparing the team in the same way.”

While most criticism of Belichick is justified, especially when it comes to his personnel decisions, Brady argued that a team’s performance does not rest solely on coaches or executives.

And with execution flaws that have kept New England’s offense sputtering all season, this is a perfect storm of ineptitude for the Patriots in a season where little has gone right.

But with changes looming on the horizon at Gillette Stadium, Brady emphasized that Belichick isn’t the only reason New England is coming off the bye week with just two wins.

“The results are different, but again, that’s why the sport is so challenging,” Brady said. “There are many reasons why teams win or lose. The head coach plays a very small role on match day. The quarterback plays a very big role on game day, not the whole thing, but because you touch the ball you have a great opportunity to influence the game.

So if you get good quarterback play and that doesn’t tell you anything about, you know, I’m just talking about football in general, then you have an advantage. If you defend really well, you have a big advantage. “I mean, you need a good defensive coordinator. In the end, a lot of things come together: why things work and why they don’t.”