Belichick's influence spreads

There are plenty of coaches who have sprung from Bill Belichick's staffs over the years, and now his tree of general managers has blossomed. Of this year's 12 playoff teams, four teams have been directly influenced by Belichick or one of his former associates.

That includes Jets general manager Mike Tannenbaum, Falcons general manager Thomas Dimitroff and Chiefs general manager Scott Pioli. And, of course, Belichick himself.

"I think those individuals are all very talented and they've done a great job in their situations," Belichick said of his protégés. "They did a great job in my association of working with them in different capacities along the way. Each situation, each team, each one is a little bit different, so I think in the end, it comes down to just doing the right thing for your team, making good decisions and finding a way to put the best team on the field. They've all done a great job of that."

Tannenbaum said he incorporates many of Belichick's ideas, although the two haven't spoken since the Jets informed the league that the Patriots were illegally taping their defensive signals in 2007, which set off the Spygate controversy.

"The things with Bill were, he always wanted to know what a player could do, not what he couldn't do," Tannenbaum said. "He'd always talk about the big picture in terms of building a roster short-term, long-term, focusing on what players could develop, what was their upside, what would their role be, what would their future be. Bill was always proactive as a long-term thinker. I've been fortunate enough to be around a lot of good people, and he's certainly at the top of that list."