Patrick Chung Compares Bill Belichick's New England Patriots To Other NFL Cultures

Former New England Patriots safety Patrick Chung experienced a bit of culture shock in his one season away from Foxboro.

Dec 11, 2017; Miami Gardens, FL, USA; New England Patriots strong safety Patrick Chung (23) talks / Jasen Vinlove-USA TODAY Sports

Bill Belichick may be the greatest NFL coach of all time, but it definitely took a certain type of personality to play for the former New England Patriots' head honcho.

Famously, or infamously dependiing on one's perspective, Belichick ran an extremely tight ship during his 24 years in New England. That approach served him well most of the time, as he has six Super Bowl rings to his name, but it certainly wasn't for everyone. Some players ended up alienated by Belichick's approach, but most seemed to like it.

Patrick Chung, who spent 10 of 11 NFL seasons in New England, is in the camp that enjoyed Belichick's approach. So much so that when the safety spent just one season with the Philadelphia Eagles in 2013, being in a more lax environment threw him for a loop.

Dec 11, 2017; Miami Gardens, FL, USA; New England Patriots strong safety Patrick Chung (23) talks / Jasen Vinlove-USA TODAY Sports

“I always call it a year off football," Chung said on "The Dan and Ninko Show." Philly‘s cool, the food is good and all that, but here it’s structured,” said Chung. “Nothing on Philly. We went to the playoffs, had great players, good coaches, but here it’s structured. [Belichick] ran the ship. You know he teaches you a lot of things on the field and off the field, if you really talk to him.

“What people see of Bill, it’s not really Bill, if you really talk to him. I’ve learned a lot of things from him, and it was like a lot of gray area there, but even though there was, we still won. …Sometimes, people need structure, and I needed structure.”

It's interesting to hear firsthand accounts on how differently Belichick operated compared to the rest of the NFL. The 71-year-old coach's tactics may have been controversial in the eyes of fans, but there's no denying that he earned the restpect of his players.