Jeff Benedict, a respected author with 16 New York Times bestsellers to his name, wrote a highly renowned book titled “The Dynasty.” This book serves as the inspiration for an Apple TV documentary sharing the same name. Both the book and the documentary delve into the remarkable two-decade reign of the New England Patriots.
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Recently, the author of “The Dynasty,” appeared on Colin Cowherd’s show, “The Herd” to discuss what sets the Patriots’ dynasty apart. While acknowledging other great dynasties like the Packers, 49ers, and Steelers, he believes none of them lasted as long as the Patriots did.
Moreover, Benedict credited the team’s success to the franchise’s trio, former quarterback Tom Brady, former head coach Bill Belichick, and owner Robert Kraft, who remained together for 20 seasons. According to Benedict, if the Patriots had followed the usual path like other NFL teams, they would have still been impressive. Benedict stated,
“And this dynasty is so unusual. And the reason I think we won’t ever see it repeated again is because it lasted two decades, with the same nucleus,”
But what made it truly special was its ability to keep winning for two decades, even after Brady suffered a major injury. In 2008. Brady suffered a torn ACL and MCL in the left knee, which forced him to miss the whole season after playing just one game. That was the only season, the New England Patriots had missed in the playoffs since 2003.
Benedict believes that the second half of the Patriots’ dynasty was much more impressive and stated Robert Kraft’s important role during this time which might not have been visible. He kept the team together, and it was Kraft’s trust in Tom Brady that helped the team win six Super Bowls.
Inside the Malcolm Butler Benching Controversy
During a conversation with Colin Cowherd, author Jeff Benedict shed light on the Malcolm Butler benching controversy that had shaken the New England Patriots. Benedict revealed that while working on his book, he discovered that even within the team, nobody seemed to know the full story behind Butler’s absence in the Super Bowl game against the Philadelphia Eagles in 2018.
Despite Butler’s key role, no one was informed or given an explanation for his absence which caused frustration among the players. Moreover, Malcolm had a good 2017 season, and he started in 15 regular season games and all three playoff games that year. Despite that, he was benched, and the Patriots had to suffer a 33-41 loss against the Eagles in the grand finale.
Additionally, Patriots owner Robert Kraft recently in one of the episodes of “The Dynasty: New England Patriots,” mentioned that the decision to bench Butler was not football-related, and suggested that there might have been some personal issues between Butler and head coach Bill Belichick. Kraft stated,
“I always felt that every decision Bill had made had been to put what was in the best interests of the team first, and put emotion aside. But, with Malcolm, he did just the opposite.”
This revelation raised questions about Belichick’s decision-making and left many wondering about the true reasons behind Butler’s benching during such a crucial game.
