Belichick isn't hiding his disdain for Jets over 2000 exit

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Bill Belichick rarely tells you how he really feels -- except when the New York Jets are involved.

The New England Patriots head coach has a checkered past with his AFC East rival that famously includes his decision to resign as Jets head coach on Jan. 4, 2000, before even coaching a game.

The decision worked out for Belichick, who joined the Patriots days later and helped build the greatest modern dynasty in professional sports.

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And he has no problem acknowledging that.

"Not only one of the most defining, but you know, one of the great moments of my career," Belichick told WEEI's "Ordway, Merloni & Fauria" on Tuesday regarding his Jets exodus. "That combined with (Patriots owner) Robert [Kraft] giving me the opportunity to come here, I couldn’t have asked for anything more.

Belichick succeeded Bill Parcells as head coach of the Jets but clearly wasn't on board with Parcells' succession plan, so he scribbled "I resign as HC of the NYJ" on a piece of paper before New England sent a first-round draft pick to the Jets to acquire him via trade.

"That wasn’t a good situation for me and I didn’t want to be part of it, so I wasn’t," Belichick said. "The other half of that was Robert giving me the opportunity to come here and trading, he gave up quite a bit to get me to come here, and that was a big trade."

These are pretty candid comments from Belichick's standards, especially since the Patriots are on a short week and facing another bitter rival in the Baltimore Ravens this Sunday.

But perhaps the head coach was buoyed by his team's last-second win over the Jets on Monday night and felt like slipping in another jab at the franchise he eagerly departed over 20 years ago.

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