Only one NFL coach refuses to wear military-themed gear on the sidelines for the “Salute to Service” program: Why is Bill Bellichick doing this?

 … he does not disrespect the military 

When I first questioned why New England Patriots Coach Bill Bellichick was not wearing the military green colors or anything else that every other coach in the NFL is to honor veterans for their service, my initial reaction was that it had to do with his arrogance.

To a point, that was correct, but it is a little more complicated based on his answers earlier this week. This part of his comments initially upset me. "Honestly, I don't think what sweatshirt I wear is that important." That immediately sets up a disdain for the military, but for Bellichick, the military is important. He was raised in a military environment, but he was not crazy about honoring veterans in the way that his fellow coaches did.

Background of Bellichick and the military

Bellichick’s father, Steve, was a World War II veteran who coached football for 34 years at the U.S. Naval Academy.

Steve Bellichick served four years in the U.S. Navy, from 1942 until 1946, and his assignments took him to both Europe and the Pacific theaters in WWII. Prior to his service, he had attended college at what is now known as Case Western Reserve in Ohio, playing football there and graduating in 1941.

Bill Bellichick was brought up in Annapolis, home of the Naval Academy, and he graduated from Annapolis High School.

Perhaps because of this background, the Pats coach may believe that he is insulated from criticism for not wearing the military colors.

Learned from the Navy years

When asked about what he had taken away from watching his father coach at the Naval Academy, Bellichick said this in a N Magazine interview:

“When I look back on it, one of the things I learned at Annapolis, when I grew up around the Navy football teams in the early sixties — Joe Bellino, Roger Staubach, Coach Wayne Hardin and some of the great teams they had — I didn’t know any differently. I just assumed that’s what football was. Guys were very disciplined. They worked very hard. They did extra things. They were always on time, alert, ready to go, team-oriented, unselfish. I thought that’s the way it all was. I wasn’t aware of it at the time, but I can see how that molded me.”

His father sent him to Phillips Academy in Andover, Mass. after high school in an attempt to improve his grades according to a 2004 on ESPN — and possibly be admitted to the Naval Academy. That did not work, but he never forgot those years in a military environment.

Bellichick explanation

When asked about his decision to forgo wearing the clothing, he emphasized that it had nothing to do with his respect for the military. He told the media that “the military and the job that our servicemen and women do and the sacrifices that they make are very important to me and my family. Always has been, always will be.”

The Patriots coach emphasized what he wears is not that important in the overall scheme of things and that there are other, perhaps better, ways of honoring the sacrifices of the veterans. “Honestly, I don’t think what sweatshirt I wear is that important,” he said. “What’s important to me is what your actions are, what you do, so I try to make those count.”

For instance, in the Patriots game against the Packers on Sunday night, Bellichick wore a button that honored Navy Petty Officer Second Class Andrew R. Bibbo, who is a Massachusetts native who enlisted in the U.S. Navy after high school. He was killed during a training mission in Nevada in 2007.

In fact, every one of the Patriots wore a decal that night with the initials of 25 New England veterans who were lost in military action. The coaches wore buttons of their faces, according to published reports on Boston.com.

Has honored veterans in the past

While some have criticized his failure to wear the colors, Bellichick has taken his players to Walter Reed Hospital in Washington, D.C. in the past to visit wounded veterans, according to Dan Wetzel of Yahoo Sports. He also speaks to his players of the importance of the military in the locker room and tells them of the importance of Veterans Day.

So, while he never served, he still reveres the military and believes in its mission, despite not wearing the colors. Perhaps that is part of the independent persona, and perhaps it sent the wrong message initially, but he is not being anti-military.

A little tone-deaf, perhaps, but not disrespectful.