Bill Belichick traded in his coaching headset and sloppy sweatshirt for a microphone and a suit during the first round of the 2024 NFL Draft, and I have to say, he did a rather respectable job.
The former New England Patriots head coach was able to provide draft analysis and break down footage like he had been doing so for years. Which, in a way, Belichick has… just not in front of a camera alongside The Pat McAfee Show.
After the entire first round has ensued, McAfee and the gang opened up the floor for Belichick to tell a story about his most interesting draft day trade. It was as if Bill had been waiting for someone to ask him that very question. As soon as it was presented, Belichick rolled right into a hilarious anecdote about acquiring star wide receiver Randy Moss from the then Oakland Raiders in 2007:
“The most interesting trade was the Randy Moss trade. We had been trying to trade for him for two months, it was like childbirth, it took forever. After the first day of the draft, I talked to (Raiders owner) Al Davis and said, ‘Are we going to do this deal or not?’
He said, ‘Yeah, we’ll do it for a fourth.’ I said, ‘We’ve got to get the guy for a physical, we’re gonna have to renegotiate his contract.’ Mr. Davis said, ‘That’s your problem.'”
That, indeed, became Bill and the Patriots’ problem. But they worked diligently to get a hold of Moss so they could iron out some of the details of the trade. Getting Randy on the phone, and keeping him on the phone, was apparently easier said than done:
“I call up Randy, I said, ‘It’s coach Belichick.’ Boom. He hangs up the phone. (Moss responded with), ‘Who’s pranking me? Is this a joke? This better not be a joke. Who is this?’ The first two times I called him to say we got him he hung up the phone because he thought it was a prank.”
Moss couldn’t believe that the Bill Belichick was calling to discuss a trade, so he did what any of us do when we expect it’s a prank call and hung up the phone. Then did it again. And possibly again.
Eventually the Patriots and Randy Moss worked out a deal, and to say it paid off would be an understatement. New England only gave up a fourth round pick to get the talented WR (then a five-time Pro Bowler), and pairing Moss with Tom Brady was a dazzling success. In a little over three seasons with the Pats, Moss racked up almost 260 catches, 3,904 yards, and 50 touchdowns.
I’d say that worked out pretty, pretty, pretty good for Bill Belichick, even though Moss hung up on him at least two times to kick off their relationship:
