Veteran NBC Sports NFL columnist Peter King said Wednesday that he hasn’t spoken to New England Patriots head coach Bill Belichick in more than 17 years.
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King told The Athletic that Belichick didn’t like the way he covered the “Spygate” scandal during the New England Patriots’ 2007 season.
“That is sometimes the price we pay for our work,” said the journalist. He’s one of the greatest coaches of all time. I’m not sure I would rank him above Paul Brown, but he is one of the best coaches of all time in any sport. But I think what he did in 2007 wasn’t right.
This year, the New England organization recorded opposing coaches’ signals during games. It all started when Patriots employees videotaped the New York Jets’ coaching signals at an unauthorized location during a game on September 9, 2007.
The NFL investigated the spying allegations and eventually fined the Pats driver $500,000. The Goodell Circuit also fined the Patriots $250,000 and also stripped them of their first pick in the 2008 draft.
The 2007 season was still historic for the Massachusetts organization as they posted a 16-0 regular season record. However, the “Pats” lost in the Super Bowl with 17 to 14 against the New York Giants.
King and Belichick have had a professional relationship that has spanned more than 40 years. The journalist was assigned to cover the sports scene for New York’s Newsday from 1985 to 1989, when Belichick was the Giants’ defensive coordinator.