Bill Belichick on Meteorologists: ‘They’re Wrong a Lot’

Image via Associated Press

Patriots head coach Bill Belichick is a man of few words. But when it comes to his thoughts on how meteorologists do their jobs when calling the weather on game day, he’s not shy about opening up his feelings like a rain cloud during a storm.

At a press conference on Friday, two days before the Patriots get ready to take on Peyton Manning and the Denver Broncos at Gillette Stadium, Belichick was asked by reporters when, exactly, it is that he takes a look at the weather forecast to see how it will impact a matchup or calls on the field. Belichick said he knows you need to be prepared for anything, which maybe explains the hooded sweatshirt thing.

That being said, two things to always bear in mind: the weather can change as quickly as the numbers on the scoreboard, and you can never really put all of your faith in a meteorologist.

Allow Belichick to explain:

I’d say based on the forecasts we’ve gotten so far this year, none of them have been even very close to what game conditions were. There was 100 percent chance of rain last week and the only water I saw was on the Gatorade table. You know, it is what it is. You know as well as I do, it could start one way and change during the game. We have to be ready for whatever it is, but my experience of going with the forecast in this area two days before the game, I mean I’d bet a lot that they’re wrong, just based on history because they’re almost always wrong. An hour before the game, maybe. You might have something to work with there. I think [if] you start game planning for what the weather is going to be and you game plan wrong, you’ve wasted a lot of time.

Belichick 1, meteorologists 0.

Belichick continued by saying that most weather predictions are “really just a bunch of hot air” no matter where you’re playing, be it New England or elsewhere. “We played down in Miami two years ago and there was a zero percent chance of rain—zero—and it rained. I’m just telling you. If I did my job the way they do theirs, I’d be here about a week,” he said.

Belichick 2, meteorologists 0.

Belichick’s dark and stormy response to how weather forecasters go about their daily jobs didn’t end there, either. When pressed again, Belichick admitted that he isn’t much of a weatherman, and certainly isn’t qualified for the job, but those who are paid to predict the changes in atmospheric pressure are “wrong a lot.”

“That’s a fact. They’re wrong a lot. We all make mistakes. I’m not being critical of them, I’m just saying I don’t think you can go based on that,” he said.

Final score: Belichick 3, meteorologists 0.

To watch the whole interview, go here.