VIDEO: Bill Belichick and Nick Saban Discussing Kobe Bryant's Dedication and Drive is Amazing

The football world, much like the basketball family, is still struggling to accept the fact that Kobe Bryant and his 13-year-old daughter Gianna were among nine passengers killed in a helicopter crash on Sunday.

New England Patriots head coach Bill Belichick, who knows a thing or two about leading his teams to championships, always cited Bryant as someone that he tried to get his players to emulate, in terms of his leadership style. He and Alabama Crimson Tide head coach Nick Saban once discussed what a unique and unparalleled leader Bryant was.

Belichick had a somewhat close relationship with Bryant, as he invited him to speak to the Patriots two years ago. Belichick remarked how the team was totally take aback by this, and that they were more captivated listening to Kobe than at any time he'd experienced in his 45 years as a coach in the NFL.

The fact that Bryant's death is being felt almost as hard in the NFL as it has been in the NBA speaks to the rare, transcendent type of player, leader, and person he was. His achievements as a basketball player are all well and good, but the legacy he left as a leader and a worker will leave more of an impact than his achievements on the court.