The Management Secrets of Patriots Coach Bill Belichick

New England Patriots coach Bill Belichick was not going out of his mind when he told his team after its first playoff victory this year: A big day for Rutgers! Three of the Patriots' players—Devin McCourty, Logan Ryan, and Duron Harmon—had gone to college there, and all three had intercepted passes in the game. This was not just a statistical improbability. It was a vindication of Belichick's style of personnel management—the most idiosyncratic in the history of pro football, and the most successful.Football players, however athletic, are pawns on a chessboard. All teams have playbooks. The Patriots' is thicker and more complicated than most. So Belichick has constructed his team around players capable of seeing the game as he does. This does not mean delegating. On the contrary—it means drilling every player to master his role (or job) and avoid mistakes. Mistake-avoidance is probably more important than inspiration. Aside from points scored, turnovers (fumbles and interceptions) are the statistic most closely correlated to wins. Belichick-coached players have internalized his phobia of turnovers. Thus Patriots running back Dion Lewis, who scored three touchdowns in that first playoff game, was mystified by those who called him a hero. Having also lost a fumble, he said, with undoubted sincerity, I feel like this was my worst game ever, actually.