Belichick: picking up players for info is 'overrated'

The Colts signing of Deion Branch has been widely speculated to have something to do his knowledge of the Patriots' current system. Branch spent several seasons in New England and likely will try to share some information with coaches and players on the Colts. Patriots head coach Bill Belichick however, believes that this part of the game is a bit "overrated":

"I think that's way overrated. A lot of times the information in those situations is misinformation," the coach continued. "There's things that change from when the person was -- and I’m not saying in any particular circumstance, just in general -- a lot of times players come in from another team tells you this is what they do, this is their call, this is this, this is that, and then it turns out that's not really what it really is."

Belichick brings up a good point that the information could be outdated or invalid by the time the player joins his new team. He went on to say that in the midst of all the preparation that teams go through on a weekly basis regarding adjustments and game plans, there is hardly any time to pick the brain of a player for info that may not even be valid.

Of course, the Colts are thin at the wide receiver position so the signing of Branch still makes sense on all levels. Regardless of whether he has information to share or not, he could indeed be a factor more for his play on the field as opposed to helping team preparation. A veteran to join a young wide receiver corpse is always valuable, especially in the absence of Reggie Wayne.

Anthony Aidonidis
@aidonidis18