We knew that Bill Belichick had a personal philosophy to rely on youth in certain positions, but we hadn’t realized this had extended into an organizational philosophy as well. Therefore, we thank BUSTED COVERAGE for letting us know about the New England Patriots’ newest cheerleader, who still had a few weeks of high school eligibility before going pro.

(Attention, Mister Belichick! Please report to the office upon entering school grounds)

While BUSTED COVERAGE still hunts for a picture of the young phenom (what, not an anonymous Facebook yet?), we press forward to an interview with her where she lets us know that “… If you have jealous boyfriends or dads, you need to have a sit-down talk with them to explain about your job that there are some things they may not like.”

(New England Patriots calendar photo shoot: essential to any 3-4 defense)

We’re not sure what you mean, Rebecca Lewis (not pictured, by the way). It all seems wholesome and… well, cheerful. Or, at least it did until we read your entire interview. We’re pretty sure Delilah would be approached with less paranoia than a Patriots cheerleader.

So what did we learn about the intricacies of NFL cheerleading?

• Don’t hug your family in public; everyone will want a “hug”.
• Do not speak to the players at all and vice versa. (Chris Cooley, please pick up the maroon and white courtesy phone…)
• “I got a letter from a guy from England who is a big Patriots fan … after they posted my profile on the Web site.” Uhm… Becca? We’re not sure what they teach at Methuen High, but the British weren’t terribly pleased with the Patriots. We suspect ulterior motives.
• “We also had a five-page football exam that you have to pass to stay on the team. You have to know every team, in every division, in every conference. You have to know about the play-offs and how you make it to the Super Bowl.” Well, that makes sense… “How many stadium seats, how many suites and things like that.” … what? Is that like knowing where the champagne rooms are? ‘Cause that’s kinda creepy.

We’ve already said our piece about a D-League for cheerleaders or forcing them to go to college for a year with tongue firmly in cheek. We have to wonder if cheerleading coaches feel more like babysitters sometimes. Best of luck to Becca, though; we think it’s an opportunity that can’t be passed up. She’ll see more of the world by next week than we’ll see before we’re retired.