FOXBORO, Mass. -- Bill Belichick, the man New York Giants linebackers affectionately called "Doom," seems uncharacteristically sunny this early June day.

	Bill Belichick (left) poses with owner Robert Kraft after being hired as the Patriots' new head coach in January.

Maybe it's because the new New England Patriots head coach is looking forward to two vacation weeks with his family in Nantucket. Maybe it's because after a messy and tumultuous exit from the New York Jets, he is out of the immense shadow of Bill Parcells and running an NFL team for the second time.

"I'm positive about the way things are going," Belichick says in his Foxboro, Mass., office. "Personally, it's fun to be putting things together."

The last time Belichick put things together in New England was 1996, when he coordinated the defense and was Parcells' assistant head coach. Was it a coincidence that the Patriots reached the Super Bowl that year, only to lose to the Green Bay Packers?

Owner Robert Kraft remembers the tenacious defense and the discipline of the Parcells-Belichick regime. After the glory of Super Bowl XXXI, Parcells left the team because of a philosophical split with Kraft. Parcells was under the impression that he was the boss, but Kraft and his de facto general manager, Bobby Grier, begged to differ. Belichick, ever the loyal soldier, actually was named the Jets head coach before Parcells, who was mired in a contract dispute. When Parcells assumed that role a few days later after compensation was mandated, Belichick was an assistant head coach all over again.

Fairly promptly, in 1998, the Jets went to the AFC Championship Game. At the same time, the Patriots were starting to lose their edge, going from 10-6 under Pete Carroll to 9-7. When New England went 8-8 this past season, Kraft knew something had to change; he fired Carroll on Jan. 3. The first person he thought of was Belichick, whose attitude he had always admired. The fact that he would be stealing a would-be Jets head coach made the proposition all the more attractive.

Belichick's execution, something that has dogged him from time to time, was not terrific. Parcells, who kicked himself upstairs into the Jets' braintrust after the season, wanted Belichick -- as was his contractual right -- to follow him as head coach.

But this time, Belichick's tour of duty as Jets head coach lasted only 26 hours when he stepped down. Problem was, he didn't tell Jets management until just before the press conference. Instead of discussing his transition to head coach, Belichick announced his resignation.

	The Belichick file
	Age: 48. College: Wesleyan University (Conn.). NFL experience: 26th season. Career record: 37-45 (1991-95 with Cleveland).

Eventually, Belichick untangled himself from his obligations to the Jets (amid more compensation) and took the Patriots' job.

And so at 48, still a relatively young age for an NFL head coach, Belichick has a second chance to get it right. He was effective for five seasons in Cleveland, where he went 37-45, including the 1994 season when the Browns were 11-5 and made the playoffs. But when Art Modell turned the Browns into the Baltimore Ravens after the 1995 season, Belichick was not invited along.

He has wasted little time in asserting his authority over a team that was adrift. Grier is no longer the personnel authority. Belichick, who fired him, is. The free ride is over and the players know it. The season will be longer and the work days harder. Job security? Outside of quarterback Drew Bledsoe and defensive end Willie McGinest, there's no such thing.

What is the players' perception of Belichick?

"I don't know," Belichick says. "You'll have to ask them."

What about it, Troy Brown?

"Man, we've released guys already," says the wide receiver. "I think guys got the message right away that this is not a game. It's your job now.

"You have to go out and take it serious. [Players] are sitting on pins and needles, not wanting to mess up."

The departure of defensive back J'Juan Cherry got the players' attention. Belichick cut him after an incident in a Boston bar. The Patriots ate his $178,000 salary cap number.

	“	I think it's a great opportunity. A lot was given up to create it. I don't want to let them down. I appreciate it, and hope I don't let them down. ”
		— Bill Belichick, Patriots coach

Was Belichick sending a message?

"Not really," he says. "It was a series of things. I didn't think it would work out."

Belichick is a brilliant defensive tactician with an all-consuming work ethic. As much as Lawrence Taylor, Phil Simms and Parcells himself, he was responsible for the Giants' two Super Bowl titles, concluding the 1986 and 1990 seasons.

Sometimes, however, his people skills are found wanting.

This time around, he is trying to be more media-friendly. He is trying to work a little less. Trying to be less cynical in public. Trying, mind you.

"I've tried to delegate more responsibility than I did previously," Belichick says. "I've tried to take some of the non-football things out of my domain, all the things that come across my desk that don't have to do with performance directly."

Belichick sighs. He understands his defensive reputation precedes him, but it is vitally important to him to be recognized as a good head coach. This might be his last chance to prove it.

"I think it's a great opportunity," Belichick says. "A lot was given up to create it. I don't want to let them down. I appreciate it, and hope I don't let them down."

Greg Garber is a regular contributor to ESPN.com.