Bill Belichick hit a bit of an under-the-radar milestone on Sunday during the Patriots’ 29-0 shutout win over the Detroit Lions. It was his 400th game as the head coach of the Patriots, making him just the fourth person in history to coach at least 400 games with a single team.

Belichick joins George Halas (506 games with the Bears), Tom Landry (454, Cowboys) and Don Shula (422) on that list. Of those four, Belichick has the highest winning percentage of the group, coming out on top in 71.5 percent of those games – 1.5 points better than the next closest coach in Halas.

Speaking with the media on Monday morning Belichick was asked about the milestone, a question that may have caught him off guard. “I didn’t realize that, thanks for giving me that number. I didn’t realize it had been 400. Doesn’t seem like that,” he said.

“Going all the way back – great opportunity to be here in ’96 and then Robert [Kraft] gave up a lot. It was hard to hire me in 2000 and gave up a lot in the trade with the Jets and all that, for me to come here. So that, in and of itself, was a great level of commitment and a blessing for me to have this opportunity,” Belichick said. “It’s worked out pretty well since then, all the way around. Hopefully, we can continue to improve and keep it going.”

“It’s been just awesome to see so many players and coaches come through here. Come in as rookies, grow, develop into great players and have great careers. We’ve had a couple of the Hall of Fame inductions the last couple of years with [Richard] Seymour and [Vince] Wilfork, guys like that. Of course there were the other ones like Troy [Brown] and Kevin Faulk and those players that were already here when I got here. Ty [Law], guys like that, [Jerod] Mayo,” Belichick continued. “Then many of them now, [Matthew] Slater, [Devin] McCourty, people like that. To just watch them come in as rookies and just start from scratch and then develop and grow into some of the greatest players in Patriots history, some of the greatest players of all time. Certainly [Tom] Brady and [Matthew] Slater will go down in that category at their positions and for the game.”

Belichick also mentioned the staffers he’s worked with in New England. “All of the coaches that have come in here and have gone from quality control assistants, all the way up the ladder to coordinators and head coaches, other places in the league. I think back on that every once in a while and just kind of say, ‘wow, I’ve been so fortunate to be able to work with so many great, great people,’” he explained. “Great coaches, great players, great people in the organization, personnel departments, Scott [Pioli], Nick [Caserio], I could go on here for days. It’s good to kind of reflect on it.”

Belichick wont’ spend too much time reflecting though, joking that it’s “probably time for me to start thinking about Cleveland [the Patriots’ next opponent].” Game 401 kicks off on Sunday at 1 p.m., with coverage beginning with Patriots Pregame at 10 a.m. on 98.5 The Sports Hub and the Patriots Radio Network. 

Alex Barth is a writer and digital producer for 985TheSportsHub.com. Any opinions expressed do not necessarily reflect those of 98.5 The Sports Hub, Beasley Media Group, or any subsidiaries. Thoughts? Comments? Questions? Looking for a podcast guest? Let him know on Twitter @RealAlexBarth or via email at abarth@985TheSportsHub.com.