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Old 09-01-2023, 07:12 PM   #1127
Carman Bulldog
College Benchwarmer
 
Join Date: Aug 2005
Location: Canada
Manning and Dungy went to and won a single Super Bowl in seven seasons right in the middle of Manning's prime.

Shula and Marino were together for 12 seasons (not counting 1993) and went to a single Super Bowl, which they lost.

Payton and Brees went to and won a single Super Bowl in fourteen seasons.

Montana and Walsh had three Super Bowls in eight seasons, but even that impressive run is surpassed by the Pats 2011-2018 in which the Pats won three Super Bowls, lost two Super Bowls and lost in the Conference championship the other three seasons.

Regardless of the quality of coach or quarterback, the kind of success that Brady and Belichick shared can't be achieved without both essentially being the very best at what they do (ie. based on history, a very good coach and an all-time great QB, or vice versa, does not reach the levels of success that Brady-Belichick achieved).

Belichick deserves more of the credit for their first dynasty. There's probably a list of 6-8 guys that the Pats could have won Super Bowl's with in that era. Brady deserves some credit for taking care of his role within the system, but he certainly had many peers at that time who were considered better quarterbacks.

I think however that Brady eventually became Belichick's equal and they share equal billing for that second dynasty. Each might have won a Super Bowl or two in that time span without each other, but no way do they get to five nor win three without each other.

In terms of Belichick, I think he also deserves a lot of credit for helping Brady reach his potential, and really far surpass any potential that anyone else ever saw in Brady. Let's put it this way. If the Pats had drafted Chad Pennington or Marc Bulger in 2000 and if Brady had been drafted by the Arizona Cardinals or the Chicago Bears, which scenario is more likely:
a. Bulger or Pennington being considered one of the all-time greats and winning multiple Super Bowls with the Pats while Brady went on to achieve very little; or

b. Brady still going on to be an all time great, winning multiple Super Bowls with the Bears or Cards while the Pats have nothing but a few middling seasons under Belichick leading to him eventually being fired around 2004?
And none of this is meant to take anything away from Brady, who I consider the greatest of all-time (at least until Patrick Mahomes plays a few more seasons) or the work Brady put in to get there.
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