Jeff Benedict’s Inside Account of the New England Patriots Dynasty to be Published by Avid Reader Press in September

New York, NY, May 19, 2020—The New England Patriots, the most dominant franchise in professional team sports over the past twenty years, are the subject of a new book by Jeff Benedict, it was announced today by Avid Reader Press, an imprint of Simon & Schuster. Benedict, most recently the coauthor of the critically acclaimed #1 New York Times bestseller Tiger Woods and a longtime special features writer for Sports Illustrated, secured exclusive access to the Patriots starting in 2018 and reported from within the organization for nearly two years. The book, titled The Dynasty, is a comprehensive account based on 250 interviews with more than 200 people and will be published in September 2020.

T. Boone Pickens (courtesy of T. Boone Pickens)

Today, T. Boone Pickens passed away at age 91. Eight years ago I had the privilege of shadowing him. Through that process, we became friends. He graciously hosted my family at his Texas ranch on numerous occasions. In his memory, I’m sharing here a short piece I wrote about my experience with him.

I spent the weekend with T. Boone Pickens, one of the wealthiest men in America. He made his fortune in oil and gas. Nobody knows energy like Boone.

In the preface to his opus “The Best and the Brightest” (the definitive account of America’s involvement in Vietnam), journalist David Halberstam shared the secret to writing a bestseller: “A book that burns in your belly — something that has to be written before you can go on to anything else.”

I love writing. I do it every day. And I never know where the stories may end up. Often, I go on a journey with the people I write about. The picture at the top of this post was taken while I was interviewing New England Patriots linebacker Kyle Van Noy back when he was a junior at Brigham Young University. I love this picture (shot by the ridiculously talented Deanne Fitzmaurice) because it speaks to innocence and youth and promise and the future. Who knew that one day Kyle would end up playing in three consecutive Super Bowls for the Patriots! That’s what I mean about not knowing where a story might end up. Congratulations, KVN!