AP

There’s a perception that Patriots coach Bill Belichick never has anything to say at his press conferences, primarily because the regular examples of Belichick not having anything to say at his press conferences become the sound bites from those press conferences. (Except when he’s making My Cousin Vinny references.)

But Belichick often provides lengthy, instructive answers to good questions about football, showing that he’s not generally disinclined to talk, but that he merely is reluctant to talk in response to questions that he deems to be bad or uninteresting.

On Thursday, Belichick added a finally comment at the end of his press conference, not in response to any specific question.

“I’ll jump in there and just wish everyone a Happy Thanksgiving,” Belichick said. “I appreciate the professional way that this group covers us and being the conduit of information from the team to the fans. We have great fan support.

“Today is also a day to be recognized with the high school football level with so many traditional and rivalry games taking place. Having been at high school and played in those games myself, we always had a traditional Thanksgiving Day game between Annapolis and Severna Park, and I know how important that was to the teams, the families and really the whole school body that supported us. It’s such a good traditional way to capture and bring a lot of things together — family, community, friendship — and do it in a competitive way but also in a way that bonds friendship and community support. And just recognizing the high schools, the great job the coaches and those programs do to develop players that eventually become our players and how impactful they are to our players.

“When I talk to players at the [scouting] combine in the spring and so forth usually the two most influential people for kids are their parents or in some cases one parent and then the high school football coach or maybe a junior high school football coach — somebody who mentored them along the way or kind of helped them develop as young men. All of us who have had that opportunity have certainly gained from it and taken from it. So just reaching out to them with our level of appreciation for what they do for kids that we eventually see at this level and for all the support that the parents and the families and the high schools gives those teams and those players and how it brings everybody together. And again, thanks to all of you for taking time on your Thanksgiving morning to accommodate us, and we look forward to seeing you out in Denver. Happy Thanksgiving.”

It’s a rare public glimpse of the human side of Belichick, which often is kept within the hard shell of a lifelong football coach who has been involved in the game since a very early age, helping his father, Steve, break down film at the Naval Academy. Belichick usually stays true to the job, but every once in a while we get a reminder of the fact that there’s more to him than the gruff, stern, abrupt, and aloof persona he adopts when in full-blown coaching mode.