The unacknowledged challenge began the moment Tom Brady left Bill Belichick and the New England Patriots. Could one find success without the other?

Brady will forever be revered in the Massachusetts area and the franchise he helped lift up, but his exit was admittedly not without friction. Former ESPN reporter Seth Wickersham rehashed some of it in his latest book release It’s Better to Be Feared: The New England Patriots Dynasty and the Pursuit of Greatness. One anecdote in particular detailed how Bill Belichick allegedly didn't even want to exchange farewells in person due to their “deteriorated” relationship.

Via Evan Bleier of Inside Hook:

“Even though Belichick told Brady that he was ‘the best player the league had ever seen,’ Brady told a friend the fact it came over the phone was ‘telling’ about how badly the duo’s relationship had deteriorated over the years,” according to ESPN’s piece publicizing the book.

Ahead of the highly anticipated Patriots-Buccaneers clash, Bill Belichick was asked about that rumored rendezvous refusal.

“That's not true,” said the Patriots coach. “I heard a few things about this book and sound like it's a lot of second, third and fourth-hand comments.”

His words could very well be true. Unless you hear it straight from players or coaches themselves, second-hand accounts aren't always the most reliable. But given the credibility of the author and the obvious incentive to squash any beef, I'd say there's a decent chance that there's at least some truth to the rumor.