How Pamela Anderson and a $1M FU to an Owner Figured Into the Patriots Coach Bill Belichick’s Pro Bowl Selections Over the Years
Bill Belichick’s public persona is one of the blandest in all of sports. The one-word answers and surly demeanor make him seem like quite a wet blanket. However, people who know the coach best will tell you that he is actually a fascinating (and even funny) guy. On the Week 14 Monday Night Football Manningcast, Peyton Manning shared some incredible Bill Belichick Pro Bowl stories with New England Patriots super-fan Bill Simmons.
Bill Belichick stuck it to his old boss at the 1999 Pro Bowl
The first story that Peyton Manning told about Bill Belichick’s unorthodox Pro Bowl choices was from 1999. That’s when, as the defensive coordinator of the New York Jets, Bill Belichick used his coach’s pick to put Baltimore Ravens linebacker Peter Boulware on the team.
The background here is that Boulware played for Ravens owner Art Modell, who was Belichick’s boss during the coach’s five seasons as Cleveland Browns head coach from 1991-95.
During that period, Belichick was 36-44 in the regular season and 1-1 in the playoffs. With a losing record after 80 games, Modell fired Belichick. The coach never forgave the owner for the firing, and the relationship was further damaged when Modell told Patriots owner Robert Kraft that hiring Belichick would be a huge mistake.
So, needless to say, Belichick did not like Modell at all. That’s why, when he saw a chance in 1999 to stick it to the owner, he took it.
“I played for Belichick one time in a Pro Bowl, and they were telling stories about times that he was the head coach,” Manning shared. “One time, he picked Peter Boulware because he knew that Art Modell would have to pay Boulware a million-dollar bonus if Boulware made the Pro Bowl. Belichick hated Modell.”
And while this story about Bill Belichick at the Pro Bowl is epic, it isn’t as hilarious as the next story Manning told.
Belichick invited a player to the Pro Bowl in the hopes he’d bring Pamela Anderson
At the end of the 2006 season, Bill Belichick coached the 2007 Pro Bowl. That year, long-snapper David Binn, who played his entire 17-year NFL career for the San Diego Chargers, made his one and only Pro Bowl appearance.
While Binn was an excellent long-snapper, Peyton Manning shared the real reason Belichick put the Chargers special teams player on the roster.
“Another time, [Belichick] picked David Binn, who was a long-snapper, because he was dating Pamela Anderson, and Bill thought the players would like seeing Pamela at the pool in Hawaii,” Manning explained.
However, the plan backfired on the Patriots coach when the legendary Baywatch actor didn’t come to the festivities.
These are just two of the stories that illustrate that Bill Belichick isn’t the humor-less automaton he likes to portray on TV. Maybe when his NFL coaching career is done, he’ll show more of his fun side to NFL fans.
Until then, in the words of the future Hall of Fame coach, it’s “on to Cincinnati.”
