Super Bowl XLVI – Thursday, February 2, 2012(on how it feels to be back at the Super Bowl) “It’s the greatest feeling in the world. I always appreciate it. We might never be back at this point again, so this is very special.”
(on playing the New York Giants again) “I don’t look at it that way. Whoever we play, we play. All of the teams in the AFC Championship Games have been worthy opponents. We’re just fortunate that we’re here.”
(on how proud he is of the coaching job Bill Belichick did this year) “I remember when I hired Bill the first year we went 5-11. The second year we were 1-3. So we were 6-14, and people where calling me an idiot and that I didn’t know how to hire people and that I should fire him. We were 6-14, and then the team in ’01 went on to go to the Super Bowl and win. You have to pick people you believe in, you have to support them, encourage them to be bold and take risks and then be patient.”
(on sticking with Coach Belichick during that time) “I just try to focus on what is right for me. I don’t sit in judgment on other people. I’m just really privileged, especially this year, in a season in which we almost didn’t have football, and we came very close to missing games, and here we are, in the biggest game of the year. I don’t know what I’m going to do after Sunday. That will be my withdrawal period.”
(on the irony of having John Mara’s team in the game as well after all the work they did to make sure there was football this season) “That’s kind. A lot of people have said that. If there’s special karma out there, then maybe that has something to do with it. I’ll tell you, John was terrific. What he did, he spent more time at it than I did. He was there every day. That family for 90 years has represented New York so beautifully in the NFL. They always put the NFL first. He’s a special man. And Steve Tisch is a great guy. You know, being in the game with owners you like a lot is also special.”
(on how he views the New York Jets) “I try not to sit in judgment. I think rivalries are what makes the NFL great. I think the New York Jets are great rivals of the Patriots. They have a really great group of players, they have a great coach and a great owner and rivalries are why people tune in. This game has the potential to be the most watched program in the history of television because of our game three or four years ago. I think the Jets-Patriots rivalry is something very healthy and what makes the NFL so special. I know that (Jet’s owner) Woody Johnson is passionate about winning and is trying to do everything he can to make it happen. And Rex, in his first two years of coaching got his team to the AFC Championship Game, so if I were a New York Jets fan, I’d like Rex. But I’m not a New York Jet fan.”
(on how his late wife liked Tom Brady) “Actually that’s a great question. She had a great relationship with Tom Brady. She knew how I felt about him, like he was a fifth son. She liked him a lot, but she liked all the players on our team. She was a woman who had never been to a football game until I bought the team. She used to do the Sunday Times crossword puzzles and I don’t know if it is politically correct, but she would go to the ‘chick flicks’ on Sundays. That was her day of peace. Remember, our games were blacked out, so I would take my four sons, we’d go down every Sunday. She always had an image of football players as behemoths. She only started learning about the game when we bought the team. She figured she should pay attention. She understood how strategic it is, whether it’s philanthropy, business, or an NFL team, how you develop and build an organization where you put team first and people aren’t looking for accolades but are just trying to do good deeds. She liked Tommy a lot. We actually took him to the Holy Land. We took him, I’ll never forget, to the Church of the Holy Sepulcher and taking him to Bethlehem, and seeing his reaction. We did the same thing with Ben Watson and Richard Seymour. I remember being at the Sea of Galilee and there was a minister there that could be their witness at the baptism and they chose me to be the witness. So I was really flattered. That’s the fun and the privilege of owning an NFL team. You have a chance to relate to young men. We try to take some every year. I’m a great believer in spirituality.”
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