Bill Belichick and Nick Saban are the best two football coaches of the game’s modern era.
It’s not fair to everyone else that Belichick, with his six Patriots Super Bowl rings, and Saban, with his six national championships from Alabama and LSU, are also good friends who keep sharing their ultimate winning ways with each other.
Their unique, longtime relationship is at the center of HBO’s newest NFL Films-produced sports documentary, “Belichick & Saban: The Art of Coaching.”
Given how both astute tacticians aren’t fans of inane media questions, going behind the scenes of their personal meetings gives real insight into what's helped each man become so successful at his level of football, together and apart. That makes the 75-minute special, which debuts Tuesday night (9 p.m. ET) on HBO, required viewing for fans of the Patriots, Alabama and wannabe football geniuses alike.
Watching the two legends talk football — almost all the time — is a treat. Belichick, 67, and Saban, 68, share a lot more than their age and acumen, including their Croatian ancestry, prodigious beginnings as sons of coaches, lifelong work ethic and attentions to detail.
From their time in Cleveland together from 1991 through ’94 with Belichick as head coach and Saban as defensive coordinator, the documentary showcases how each leader learned how to win big: By preaching “do your job” and maximizing their personnel.
They look back on their best moments and also aren’t afraid to talk about what they learned from the worst of losses — see the “Miami Miracle” and the “Kick Six." The candid conversation gives an honest look at both coaches, better than any single interviewer could do for either.
“It’s hard to keep trying to achieve to the top level all the time,” Belichick shares with Saban. “It’s easy when you’re down to bounce back.”
Based on their accomplishment on the sidelines, Belchick and Saban have strong cases to be declared the best all-time in their sports. “The Art of Coaching” makes you more greatly appreciate their personalities and how they consistently push the right buttons. Their families, their colleagues and their competitors help tell that story well, too.
There forever will be a mystique about what Belichick keeps doing with the Patriots and what Saban keeps doing at Alabama. Thanks to NFL Films and HBO, the curtain gets pulled to understand more of the method to the magic.
