Bill Parcells: Patriots QB is like ‘my own son,’ bond incredibly meaningful (2024)

Like a proud father, Bill Parcells tuned in to the Patriots preseason opener Thursday night against the Carolina Panthers.

He was dying to watch “his kid” play.

While Jacoby Brissett is technically not related to Parcells, they do enjoy a special father-son dynamic - even to the point where the Patriots quarterback affectionately refers to him as “grandpa.”

“I’m just pulling for him now. It stresses my Sundays, but that’s nothing new,” Parcells told MassLive Friday when asked to characterize his relationship with New England’s presumptive starter. “He’s a special kid. People would have a hard time putting two guys like us together. They wouldn’t think things like this could happen. But they can.

“That’s what football does. That’s one of the good things about it. Football is color blind.”

As the story goes, Parcells first encountered the young signal-caller during a Dwyer High School practice in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida, when Brissett was 15. The Pro Football Hall of Fame head coach has a home in Florida and knew Dwyer High head coach Jack Daniels. So he’d often show up at Friday practices and watch the proceedings.

After that first meeting, Parcells and Brissett forged a longstanding friendship. Parcells saw something special in the highly-recruited, two-sport athlete who wound up choosing football over basketball. During the early stages of their relationship, Parcells helped the quarterback hone his skills, preparing him for college and, later, the NFL Draft.

As for Brissett, it was hard not to be taken by the Super Bowl-winning head coach who was larger than life. He was awed by the coaching icon who showed an interest in him.

Ultimately the union evolved into Parcells being a trusted confidant and advisor to Brissett, who was originally drafted by the Patriots in 2016, and is on his second stint in New England. Of late, however, Parcells is more like a doting father.

“I told him, ‘I’m tired of staying up Sunday nights just to watch you,’’' Parcells said. “He says ‘What else you got to do, old man?’

“But I will tell you, I really do love him. I really do,” the former Patriots coach went on. “I have a strong affection for him. He is an absolute No. 1, high-class kid.”

The feeling is mutual.

Brissett feels fortunate to have the now 82-year-old Parcells in his life, keeping watch, and guiding him from afar. He loves that he’s been able to break through Parcells’ gruff exterior. It seems the curmudgeonly coach has a big heart.

Who knew?

“He’s a softie. If you get to know him really well, he’s a big softie,” Brissett said of Parcells, who initially guided Drew Bledsoe in New England after the quarterback was taken first overall by the Patriots in the 1993 NFL draft. “He’s always been somebody I’ve talked to throughout my career … he is like my grandpa. I go to him all the time with stuff.”

Parcells, who has three daughters, actually choked up a couple of times during the call talking about what Brissett means to him, and how he’s weathered the ups and downs of the quarterback’s career, bouncing from New England, to Indianapolis, then Miami, Cleveland, Washington and back.

He loves that Brissett is now getting a chance to be a starter right out of the gate with the Patriots, even with third-overall pick Drake Maye waiting in the wings.

“One time (Brissett) told me, he says, ‘Coach, I’ve done everything exactly like you told me how to do it, and I still can’t get a chance to play.’ And he’d be so sad. And that makes me sad as we’re here talking about it,” Parcells said. “And I know it’s true. I know he did what he said he did. And he still couldn’t get a chance.

“I just think now, he’s a more veteran player, he has more experience, and he understands things,” the Tuna went on. “He still has that chip on his shoulder about proving to himself what he’s capable of in this league. That’s what he’s still about.”

Brissett, who is expected to be the Week 1 starter when the Patriots take on Cincinnati in the season opener, played in just one series during Thursday night’s 17-3 win. He’s looked good in camp, and having played in Cleveland, knows Alex Van Pelt’s offense.

The veteran quarterback, who signed a one-year, $8 million contract with the Patriots in March, is well aware he’s a placeholder until Maye is ready. He’s been a good mentor to both Maye and fellow rookie Joe Milton III. But Brissett, a longtime backup in the NFL, has also made a point of letting people know he plans on making the most of his opportunity and starting assignment.

He wants to prove his worth and make it difficult for Jerod Mayo to replace him. That kind of attitude doesn’t surprise Parcells.

“Everyone wants what’s new, but that’s fine. I’m just happy (Brissett is) doing OK and getting a chance,” Parcells said when asked about the clamor for Maye. “He’s just a very special young man. I know a lot of them. I’ve run into a lot of young guys. But I have a really strong feeling for Jacoby.

“He’s like my own kid, he really is, my own son,” the legendary coach went on. “I want the best for him. And so far, he’s made his way in this world pretty well.”

Brissett is 30 years old now. Parcells has known him for half of his life. From setting him up with a coach (Dan Henning) to help him with his mechanics early on, to teaching him about conditioning, Parcells has done what he could to help Brissett succeed along the way.

Since Brissett has been in the league nine seasons, Parcells’ work is pretty much done. But the caring doesn’t stop.

“I talk to him differently now than when he was 15 or 16. You try to guide him, direct him to go on the right path. But that was easy with him,” Parcells said. “He was hungry for it. And I try, without being a jerk, to help him, and let him know I care about what’s going on, and I do.”

Brissett, who is his own agent, will often run football matters by Parcells - even some non-football issues. He’ll recite chapter and verse about what his “grandpa” has done for him, and how much he’s aided him in his career. The biggest thing he’s taken from Parcells, however, has nothing to do with football.

“He’s always been a good person in my life. He’s been consistent,” said Brissett, who was raised by a single mother. “I think that’s what I’ve learned the most, his action of being consistently a good person to me. That’s something I try to exude on my own.”

Parcells loved hearing he had rubbed off on Brissett in that way.

“I keep telling him, you can make a difference in this world if you want to. I preach that to him. I say you can do things for your community … if you try,” Parcells said. “And he’s good. He does it. He buys bikes for the kids. He does a lot of stuff.”

Brissett was a Walter Payton Man of the Year nominee in 2020 in part for his commitment to philanthropy and community impact. During his previous stop with Washington, Brissett gave away free bikes to kids as part of his Start the Cycle Community Bike Ride in partnership with the Metropolitan Police Department. He’s held that event in every city he’s been the past four years.

Along with football, that side of Brissett also makes “grandpa” incredibly proud.

“You know, when you’re emotionally tied to somebody, it makes a difference,” Parcells said. “I’m fortunate that he’s a friend of mine. He’s what you see. He’s not phony. He’s just a really nice young man, and I’m proud to know him.”