Getty Bill Belichick actually laughed in a postgame press conference.
There’s actually something out there that makes Bill Belichick laugh.
After the New England Patriots defeated the Buffalo Bills 24-17 to clinch their 11th consecutive AFC East division title, the veteran head coach was clearly in a better mood than usual.
Belichick is usually emotionless during his postgame press conferences, but this time around, he showed off a little bit of his personality — and a whole lot of smiles. And at one point during the postgame press conference, Belichick let out a laugh.
Why?
Because of a few plush toy elves that were laying around the podium. That’s right, plush toy elves is what makes the 67-year-old Belichick burst into laughter.
What makes Bill Belichick smile?
Elves on the podium
The plush elves — and the victory over the Bills — put Belichick in such a good mood that he wished the media members that were present, “happy holidays.”
This was definitely a postgame press conference for the ages, indeed.
Tom Brady Looks ‘Tom Terrific’ Again
Leading into the game versus the Bills, details emerged that Tom Brady‘s elbow injury was a little more significant than people were led to believe by just looking at the Patriots’ injury report all season long.
Brady is apparently dealing with an injury termed “tennis elbow,” but the 42-year-old veteran quarterback showed no such signs of the injury in New England’s 24-17 victory over Buffalo. In fact, not only did Brady start out the game on fire — he didn’t miss a completion during his first seven attempts — he also led a fourth quarter comeback against the playoff-bound Bills.
The 20th-year veteran had his best game in months, completing nearly 79 percent of his passes for 8.2 yards per attempt and a 111.0 quarterback rating.
Brady was in a more jovial mood than usual, clearly enjoying the Patriots’ 11th consecutive AFC East crown — an NFL record.
“It’s pretty cool,” Brady said. “It’s hard to do, and it’s a lot of effort and hard work, and a lot of people are coming in day after day and sitting in these chairs and trying to do what’s right for the team. It’s a great reward, it’s a great step for us and it’s great to control the ability to do that, too. Happy for us, our team, our coaches, our families and our fans, and hopefully we can build on it and go play great next week.”
Tom Brady Isn’t Worried About Elbow Injury
As far as his elbow injury is concerned, Brady — who has been listed as questionable on the injury report this season due to the elbow ailment — downplayed the new report of the significance of his injury.
Via Dakota Randall of NESN:
“I feel good,” Brady said. “This is a new injury, this isn’t the old elbow. So, I’ll be fine. “Thank you guys, appreciate your concern.”
While the topic of Brady’s elbow injury likely won’t be as prevalent as in previous weeks due to the Patriots’ recent victory, it is obviously something worth monitoring as the Patriots prepare for yet another postseason trip.
New England still has to wrap up the No. 2 seed in Week 17 as they’ll have the opportunity to do so at home versus the Miami Dolphins.