War Room Book Review

I finally finished reading War Room, by Michael Holley, this morning. I know, it took me long enough. The ridiculous amount of time it took is a reflection of my lack of time, rather than the book. I really enjoyed the book - I think it's my favourite of the three I've read so far and mentioned on this blog. It has a lot more detail than Patriot Reign, I think mostly because it focusses on the construction of NFL teams, including the draft process, rather than being a more general overview of the Patriots. It was also a lot less 'bitty' and much easier to read than The Draft. I think this was because it focusses on one team to start with (moving on to three teams, but only because it's following the same people) and it is written sequentially as well. With The Draft was harder to keep track of what was happening when, and where.

The book is an absolutely fascinating insight into how Bill Belichick thinks about building a team, how he sees things in players that other people don't, and how he prioritises differently. For example, many people will look at prospective players and see the obvious things - speed, agility, the clear skills required for their position (throwing, catching, blocking, running) - but not necessarily consider other factors that aren't so obvious. Little things about the way players move can determine their ability as much as their catching skills. Likewise, players need to have the right mentality. I also was really impressed with the way Holley captures Belichick's ability to balance the needs of the team with the players available. So you might be able to get a first round draft pick with all the skills you need, but if you can get one who is almost as good in the third round, whilst paying lots less (and potentially gaining more draft picks if you trade your high ones for more lower ones), you can help yourself deal with the salary cap whilst getting a great player. As I've mentioned before, Tom Brady (picked 199th over, in the sixth round) is proof of this! If you can get several lower round draft picks and get several great players, instead of one potentially amazing player (who could turn out to be a bust anyway), surely that's a no-brainer?!

It's also incredibly interesting to learn how Belichick essentially developed an entire new scouting system (admittedly with help from others) and how this has pretty much spread to other teams, mostly due to his former colleagues now working elsewhere. I know that the book is somewhat biased, and obviously I now have more knowledge about the New England Patriots than other teams, but I do love that their owner has a vested interest in the franchise other than its business and financial aspects - he is, first and foremost, a Patriots fan.

After reading the book, I'm now pretty excited and curious for this year's draft, which starts in four days (NFL.com has a countdown to the start time!). I've never watched a draft before, and whilst it's unlikely I'll watch much in real time (it starts at about midnight our time, and I very much need to be sleeping soon after that, if not before it even starts!), I intend to tape it and watch some. I'm not sure what I expect from it. I kind of expect some of it to be boring, as it does go on a long time. At the same time, I'm really interested to see what it's like, what the atmosphere is like, and which teams pick which players. In the meantime, I'm going to start reading Next Man Up by John Feinstein - the next book on the 'recommended reading list' (as specified by my other half!).