• Editor’s note: Former Patriots general manager Upton Bell has authored a newly available book, “Present at the Creation: My Life in the NFL and the Rise of America’s Game,” with Herald columnist Ron Borges. Today, we excerpt a portion of the book covering the turbulent start to Bell’s tenure working as GM for then-Patriots owner Billy Sullivan in 1971. ***
Before I left for the annual owners’ meetings in Palm Beach in March, I told one of our secretaries not to forget to send the option letters out. There was paperwork stacked everywhere, but I thought everything was fine.