He's not alone, but Bill Belichick sits out there as a preseason completist.
Speaking with WEEI-FM on Monday, Belichick revealed that he's sat through every 2017 preseason game to date. His motivation, pure and simple, is to get a look at the league's new crop of rookies and off-the-grid, fringe types hoping to make a roster.
"We're focused on the team we play and the teams that we cross over with," Belichick said Tuesday, per Boston.com. "In this case, Kansas City, the teams that they've played, obviously, we'll see them. But two teams that aren't on our schedule that played each other last week, generally, we wouldn't be pouring over that film unless there was some particular reason."
It would be interesting to learn how many other NFL head coaches have done the same. Successful preparation adopts many forms, but Belichick's methods stand out after nearly two decades worth of championship-level roster churning in New England.
Case in point: Rex Burkhead, the ex-Bengals running back who signed a one-year, $3.15 million deal with the Patriots in March. That was viewed as eye-popping cash for a back with 87 carries over four years in Cincy, but Burkhead has looked like a perfect fit for New England this summer.
"Like all players in the league, we followed him out of college and then every year in the league," Belichick said. "I wouldn't say the evaluation was made on one play or one series or anything like that. We had quite a bit of information on this player."
In last week's preseason win over the Lions, three former Bills -- receiver Chris Hogan, runner Mike Gillislee and cover man Stephon Gilmore -- all registered key contributions. Last year's version of Burkhead, in a sense, was Hogan, who Belichick hotly pursued before turning the wideout into a core member of the Super Bowl-winning roster.
"The main thing I noticed] when I got over here is seeing how organized everything is," former [Lions offensive tackle LaAdrian Waddle told Boston.com. "How detailed the preparation is, how much emphasis they put on the little stuff, pretty much how they go about business. Everything is a little more detail-oriented and fine-tuned."
Like it or not, something is working -- and something is different -- in Foxborough.
