In late January, Tommy DeVito was competing in the East-West Shrine Bowl in Las Vegas, and he spent time that week around Bill Belichick — who was serving in a supervisory role, with the Patriots coaching staff assigned to work with the West squad.
An impression was made.
“What you see is what you get,’’ DeVito said. “The way he acts, he’s always, like, even if there’s a touchdown when you see him on TV and he’s just standing there just looking, no emotion, it’s kind of how he is, or that’s how he was at least for that one week. I don’t really know him besides that. But yeah, he’s an awesome coach.’’
That “awesome coach’’ is having a far less than awesome season, with the Patriots arriving Sunday at MetLife Stadium actually in worse shape (2-8) than the 3-8 Giants, who ended a three-game losing streak with last week’s 31-19 victory over the Commanders.
It has mostly been a mess for two franchises that famously (or infamously, if you reside in the New England region) hooked up in Super Bowl XLII and Super Bowl XLVI, the Giants winning both games in upset fashion.
Those glory days are long gone, for both teams.
The Giants, trying to figure it out at quarterback, turned their lonely eyes to the undrafted DeVito after Daniel Jones (knee surgery) and Tyrod Taylor (ribs) went down.
Belichick has healthy players available at the position but is playing mind games or something else with his “I told everybody to be ready to go” decree as he keeps secret whether it will be struggling Mac Jones or Bailey Zappe making the start against the Giants.
There is a good chance both teams will be looking for outside help at quarterback in 2024.
At present, the Giants sit at No. 5 overall in the next draft and the Patriots have the No. 3 pick.
Those positions can change, of course, in the coming weeks. Jones will return in the second year of his four-year, $160 million contract, coming off surgery to repair his right ACL and should be ready at or near the start of next season.
Mac Jones has one year remaining on the rookie deal he signed as the No. 15 pick in the 2021 draft.
DeVito?
He is looking to carry over the momentum he created with a three-touchdown, zero interception outing at Washington, as he was sacked nine times — plenty of those sacks of his own making — and shredded the Commanders so completely that this week they fired their defensive coordinator and defensive backs coach.
What comes next for DeVito is either a rite of passage or a wrong-way detour.
The best thing a rookie quarterback can see when he looks ahead at the schedule is no sign of the Patriots or Belichick.
It is usually a toxic mix for the inexperienced quarterback. This is the scenario that awaits DeVito.
The Patriots are 24-6 when facing rookie quarterbacks in Belichick’s tenure.
There were 24 touchdown passes thrown by the novices and 44 interceptions, according to Elias Sports Bureau.
“He’s really good at what he does, and the players are good,’’ coach Brian Daboll said of Belichick. “They run a good scheme, give you a variety of looks. He’s been doing it for a long time, since the year I was born — 1975, with the Lions, I believe.’’
Oh, so close. Belichick did start his coaching career in 1975 but it was with the Colts. He was with the Lions in 1976 and 1977.
In good times and the rare bad times, Belichick is almost always capable of confounding a youngster across the line of scrimmage.
“Yeah, I mean, he’s one of the greatest of all time or is the greatest of all time coach to ever come through the NFL,’’ DeVito said. “It’s an honor to be able to play against him. I’ve been around him a little bit in the past with the Shrine Game, him and the Patriots were my coaching staff for that game.
“So, I got to know a lot of them and kind of how they go about their business. But it’s a challenge I look forward to it. At the end of the day, I’m going to continue to do what I do and prepare and continue to just try to lead this team and lead this offense and not think too much about it.’’