New England Patriots head coach Bill Belichick reportedly talked with President Donald Trump about the status of quarterback Tom Brady last week, according to a New York Times report.
The Times report, a profile of White House Chief of Staff John F. Kelly, includes one interesting nugget for Patriots fans.
At a breakfast event last week, the Times said Kelly "marveled that Mr. Trump had spent a long time the day before on the phone with Bill Belichick, the New England Patriots coach, talking about the status of Tom Brady, the star quarterback."
Brady and Trump were once close, but Brady appears to have distanced himself - at least publicly - from the president in recent years.
Belichick's relationship with Brady also appears to have become strained. Throughout last season, numerous stories surfaced about tension between Brady and Belichick, mostly stemming from Belichick's decision to ban Brady's trainer and business partner, Alex Guerrero, from the sidelines during games.
Patriots owner Robert Kraft, another friend of Trump's, has also distanced himself from the president on some issues, including Trump's criticism of NFL players for kneeling during the national anthem.
Belichick, however, hasn't made any public statements about Trump since his election.
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Just before the 2016 election, Trump announced that Belichick had sent him a letter endorsing his candidacy.
"Our friendship goes back many years and I think that anyone who has spent more than five minutes with me knows I'm not a political person," Belichick said after news of his letter was made public.
"To me, friendship and loyalty is just about that. It's not about political or religious views. I write hundreds of letters and notes every month. Doesn't mean that I agree with every single thing that every person thinks about, politics, religion or other subjects, but I have multiple friendships that are important to me, and that's what that was about," he added.
