NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER
From the #1 New York Times bestselling coauthor of Tiger Woods
comes the definitive inside story of the New England Patriots--the
greatest sports dynasty of the 21st century.
It's easy to forget that the New England Patriots were once the
laughingstock of the NFL, a nearly bankrupt team that had never won a
championship and was on the brink of moving to St. Louis. Everything
changed in 1994, when Robert Kraft acquired the franchise and soon
brought on board head coach Bill Belichick and quarterback Tom Brady.
Since then, the Patriots have become a juggernaut, making ten trips to
the Super Bowl, winning six of them, and emerging as one of the most
valuable sports franchises in the world. Today, the team's twenty-year
reign atop the NFL stands as the longest in league history.
How was the Patriots dynasty built? And how did it last for two decades?
In The Dynasty, acclaimed journalist Jeff Benedict provides richly
reported answers in a sweeping account based on exclusive interviews
with more than two hundred insiders--including team executives, coaches,
players, players' wives, team doctors, lawyers, and more--as well as
never-before-seen recordings, documents, and electronic communications.
Through his exhaustive research, Benedict uncovers surprising new
details about the inner workings of a team notorious for its secrecy. He
puts readers in the room as Robert Kraft outmaneuvers a legion of
lawyers and investors to buy the team. We listen in on the phone call
when the greatest trade ever made--Bill Belichick for a first-round
draft choice--is negotiated. And we look over the shoulder of
forty-year-old Tom Brady as a surgeon operates on his throwing hand on
the eve of the AFC Championship Game in 2018.
But the portrait that emerges in The Dynasty is more rewarding than
new details alone. By tracing the team's epic run through the
perspectives of Kraft, Belichick, and Brady--each of whom was
interviewed for the book--the author provides a wealth of new insight
into the complex human beings most responsible for the Patriots'
success. We watch the NFL's savviest owner treat Brady like a son,
empower Belichick to cut and trade beloved players, and spend sleepless
nights figuring out diplomatic ways to keep Brady and Belichick together
for two decades. We come to understand how a genius head coach keeps his
players at an emotional distance and blocks out anything that gets in
the way of winning. And we experience the relentless drive, ferocious
competitive nature, and emotional sensitivity that allows Brady to
continue playing football into his forties.
The result is an intimate portrait that captures the human drama of the
dynasty's three key characters while also revealing the secrets behind
their success. This is perhaps the most compelling and illuminating book
that will ever be written about the greatest professional sports team of
our time.
