Bill Belichick Releases Heartwarming Statement on Death Of Former Patriots Coach

The death of Ray Perkins, a former New England Patriots coach, shocked the entire world of football. Perkins died earlier this week, and head coach Bill Belichick released a statement following the tragedy.

Perkins played collegiately at Alabama and with the Baltimore Colts. He died at 79 on Dec. 9. Perkins was head coach at Alamaba and with the New York Giants. He was leading the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and then worked as an assistant coach for the Patriots. Perkins was part of the Patriots family from 1974-77 and 1993-96.

Belichick reacts to the death of the former Patriots coach

Coach Belichick released an emotional statement on Saturday morning. He talked about the opportunity he was given in 1979. Perkins made it happen, and Belichick is more than grateful. He has lots of respect for Ray and they were actually really close. Perkins did a wonderful job for the Giants program, providing a game-changing plan. Belichick also said that Perkins has played for two of the best coaches of all time in Bear Bryant and Don Shula.

Bill Belichick learned so much from Ray Perkins, and offered words of gratitude for the changes he made with the Giants

“Ray gave me an opportunity in 1979 to go with the Giants and that was a life-changing moment for me. I’ve always been deeply appreciative of that opportunity and have a ton of respect for Ray. We developed a very close relationship and I appreciate all that he did for the Giants program, which was terrible when he took over in ’79, to make it a highly competitive team in ’81 and ’82 was a strike year. As a former player and coach, Ray had a good perspective on the game. He played for two of the greatest coaches of all time in Bear Bryant and Don Shula. His level of competitiveness and toughness was about as good as anybody I’ve ever been around.

“With the Patriots, the terminology that Ray and Ron Erhardt used under Coach [Chuck] Fairbanks here in the late 70s, early 80s that then came to New England with Ray and with Bill Parcells after the ’80 season. Certainly the terminology and a lot of the fundamentals and foundation of our offensive system are still in that offense from Ray and Ron back in the late 70s under Coach Fairbanks. So, he had a big impact on my life and my career and I have a ton of respect for Ray and his family. My personal sympathies go out to them as part of the Patriots family,” Belichick said.