Bill Belichick isn't really known for handing out effusive praise after a game, but that's exactly what he did on Thursday after watching Tom Brady make NFL history during the Patriots' 38-24 win over the Colts. 

Not only did Brady throw his 500th career touchdown pass, but he also set an NFL record when he connected with Josh Gordon for a 34-yard score in the fourth quarter. Gordon became the 71st player to catch a touchdown pass from Brady, which topped Vinny Testaverde's previous record of throwing a touchdown to 70 different players. 

After the game, Belichick offered some high praise for Brady. 

"There's no quarterback I'd rather have than Tom Brady," Belichick said, via quotes distributed by the team. "He does a great job week in and week out, year in and year out, all of the situations. He does a great job."

No one appreciates football history more than Belichick and from the sound of it, he was equally impressed with both of Brady's accomplishments. 

"It's tremendous," Belichick said of Brady hitting 71 different receivers, via quotes distributed by the team. "That's a lot of touchdown passes to a lot of different guys, too,"

The Patriots coach even complimented the way that Brady and Gordon were able to make their fourth-quarter touchdown pass happen. 

"It wasn't really the way we drew it up, but it ended up being an extended play with two great players making a great play," Belichick said. "Josh has worked hard. Tom has spent extra time working with him and really all of the receivers, backs and tight ends, as well. It's good to see that hard work pay off."

Although it felt like Belichick handed out a season's worth of compliments  -- at least for him -- he kept going. At the end of his press conference, he was asked what Brady meant to the Patriots organization. 

"There's a lot of people who have meant a lot to this organization, but certainly nobody more than Tom Brady," Belichick said. 

Who is this guy and what did he do with Belichick?

Generally, those are the kinds of things that Belichick only says after a Super Bowl win or an AFC title win, not after a win over a 1-3 Colts team in Week 5. However, it seems that things might be changing in Foxborough. 

After multiple reports of tension in the Patriots locker room last season, it's almost like Belichick has gone out of his way to make things better this year. Back in January, ESPN.com reported that one of the biggest things causing tension in New England was the fact that Brady felt "Belichick's negativity and cynicism" were both getting old. Brady also was apparently unhappy about the fact that he never really got any credit from Belichick for the team's wins. For instance, Brady reportedly thought he deserved to win at least one "Patriot of the Week" award, but that never happened. 

Handing out praise like he did on Thursday is a good way to fix those problems. 

If there was any tension left between Belichick and Brady, it seems that the two of them have decided to throw it out the window for 2018. Not only have we now seen Belichick praise Brady, but we've also seen it the other way around. Back in May, Brady called Belichick the greatest coach of all-time. Brady then followed that up in August by saying that he felt "privileged" to be mentored by Belichick. 

Basically, the Patriots' only distraction last season was themselves, and now that that's not a distraction, the AFC is likely in a lot of trouble.