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It's Better to Be Feared: The New England Patriots Dynasty and the Pursuit of Greatness

It's Better to Be Feared: The New England Patriots Dynasty and the Pursuit of Greatness

by Seth Wickersham

Liveright ·2021 ·528 pages
Best of 2021
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94/99
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98/99

Critics' Rating Index

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89/99

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Scholars' Citation Index

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About This Book

Over two unbelievable decades, the New England Patriots were not only the NFL's most dominant team, but also—and by far—the most secretive. How did they achieve and sustain greatness—and what were the costs? In It's Better to Be Feared, Seth Wickersham, one of the country's finest long form and investigative sportswriters, tells the full, behind-the-scenes story of the Patriots, capturing the brilliance, ambition, and vanity that powered and ultimately unraveled them. Based on hundreds of interviews conducted since 2001, Wickersham's chronicle is packed with revelations, taking us deep into Bill Belichick's tactical ingenuity and Tom Brady's unique mentality while also reporting on their divergent paths in 2020, including Brady's run to the Super Bowl with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Raucous, unvarnished, and definitive, It's Better to Be Feared is an instant classic of American sportswriting in the tradition of Michael Lewis, David Maraniss, and David Halberstam.


Reviews

"Patriots fans will revel in all the little-known backstories, while all football fans and readers seeking astonishing success stories will relish this, too."

Robert St. John· Booklist Read review ↗ Top of the Pile

"this is hardly a dual hagiography."

Edward Kosner· The Wall Street Journal Read review ↗ Top of the Pile

"Seth Wickersham, with thorough reporting and the experience of covering New England's twists and turns, manages a noteworthy feat in It's Better to Be Feared..."

Oskar Garcia· The New York Times Read review ↗ Top of the Pile

"Reporters have breathlessly covered the Patriots over the years, leaving little room for new reveals, but Wickersham advances the ball with anecdotes that unpeel the personalities of the franchise's significant figures."

Mark Selig· The Washington Post Read review ↗ Top of the Pile

"Wickersham's fly-on-the-wall accounts are fascinating, but he's at his best when he explains, carefully and evenhandedly, how the business of football works."

Kirkus Read review ↗ Top of the Pile

"It's Better To Be Feared is the accounting the Patriots dynasty deserves."

Chad Finn· The Boston Globe Read review ↗ Top of the Pile

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