How Bill Belichick won six Super Bowl championships with the Patriots
Bill Belichick is out as the head coach of the New England Patriots, as his nearly quarter-of-a-century tenure with the team comes to an end.
Belichick, 71, has a host of NFL coaching records, including winning 17 division titles and six Super Bowl championships, which is more than 30 other franchises have in their history.
After spending five years as the head coach of the Cleveland Browns (1991-95) and one day as the New York Jets head coach in 2000, Belichick skipped over to the Jets' division rival and the rest is history. New England went on to set the standard for excellence and became the NFL's newest dynasty.
Here is a list of Belichick's six championships as the Patriots head coach.
Super Bowl 36 (2002)
The first of Belichick's Super Bowl titles, the Patriots were led by a backup quarterback named Tom Brady, who took over the starting role after starter Drew Bledsoe was knocked out in Week 2. Super Bowl 36, which was the first NFL championship game played in February, pitted the Patriots against the St. Louis Rams' "Greatest Show on Turf" and league MVP Kurt Warner. The Patriots jumped out to a 17-3 lead before the Rams stormed back to tie the score on a Warner touchdown run and touchdown pass. Brady drove the Patriots 53 yards in nine plays on the winning drive, which ended on an Adam Vinatieri field good from 48 yards as time expired.
Super Bowl 38 (2004)
The Patriots returned to the title game against the Carolina Panthers after missing the playoffs during the 2002 season. Led by an MVP performance from Brady (32-48, 354 yards, 3 TDs, 1 INT), Super Bowl 38 was scoreless for 27 minutes before Brady found Deion Branch on 5-yard touchdown strike in the second quarter. The fireworks were just beginning (starting with "Nipplegate" as the halftime entertainment). The teams combined for 37 points in the fourth quarter and the Panthers took the lead when quarterback Jake Delhomme threw a touchdown pass to Ricky Proehl with 1:08 left. But Brady was left with too much time, and he drove New England 37 yards in six plays. Vinatieri drilled a 41-yard field goal with 4 seconds left to deliver the Patriots' second title in three years.
Super Bowl 39 (2005)
The Patriots won their third Super Bowl in four years, this time over the Philadelphia Eagles. The Eagles turned the ball over four times, but the score was tied at 14 after three quarters. Corey Dillion's 2-yard run early in the fourth quarter gave New England the lead for good, as the Eagles seemingly took their sweet time on their next scoring drive to cut the lead to 24-21 with less than two minutes left. Branch tied a Super Bowl record with 11 catches for 133 yards, and was named the game's MVP.
Super Bowl 49 (2015)
The Seattle Seahawks entered the game as the defending Super Bowl champions and were poised to repeat, taking a 10-point lead into the fourth quarter. Brady led New England on a nine- and 10-play drive, throwing two touchdowns to take a 28-24 lead. Seattle got the ball back with 2:02 left and, led by quarterback Russell Wilson, drove to the New England 5-yard-line with 1:06 remaining. Marshawn Lynch gained four yards on the next play. On the second-and-goal play, Wilson threw a slant intended for Ricardo Lockette, but Patriots cornerback Malcolm Butler jumped the route and intercepted the ball, ending the threat and giving New England its fourth Super Bowl title. Questions still linger to this day concerning why Seattle didn't run the ball from the 1-yard line, and the Seahawks haven't reached the Super Bowl since that game.
Super Bowl 51 (2017)
Whenever Atlanta Falcons fans see the score 28-3, they most likely look away. The Falcons had that lead in the third quarter before the Patriots stormed back with 19 points in the fourth quarter and tied the score at 28 on a 1-yard touchdown run by James White with under a minute to go, and a two-point conversion pass from Brady, the game's MVP who had his jersey stolen from the locker room after the game, to Danny Amendola. The Patriots won the coin toss to start overtime and drove the ball 75 yards in eight plays, ending the game when White plunged into the end zone from two yards out, ending the biggest comeback in Super Bowl history.
Super Bowl 53 (2019)
The last of Belichick's six titles came against the upstart Los Angeles Rams and coach Sean McVay. Both teams struggled to put the ball in the end zone, and the score was tied at 3 entering the fourth quarter. Finally, with seven minutes left, New England broke through, capping a 69-yard drive when running back Sony Michel scored on a 2-yard run. A 41-yard field goal by Stephen Gostkowski with 1:12 left completed the scoring. Wide receiver Julian Edelman was named the game's MVP after catching 10 passes for 141 yards.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Bill Belichick's six Super Bowls as Patriots head coach
