The greatest head coaching run in history is officially over, as the New England Patriots and Bill Belichick have officially parted ways. Belichick spent the past 24 seasons in Foxboro, serving as head coach and de-facto General Manager while helping to lead the team to six Super Bowl victories, nine AFC championships, and countless records.
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The #Patriots are moving on and so is the greatest coach of all time.
Bill Belichick won’t be New England’s coach in 2024, per me and @TomPelissero, as his celebrated 24-year tenure, one that included 6 Super Bowl wins, is over. A new era awaits. pic.twitter.com/QRqfe2lkHh— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) January 11, 2024
New England Patriots Part Ways With Bill Belichick
This news comes after the worst season in Belichick’s tenure as a head coach. After a disappointing 2022 season where Mac Jones regressed under then-offensive coordinator Matt Patricia, owner Robert Kraft said that the Patriots needed to make the playoffs in 2023. That didn’t happen, as Jones’ performance continued to worsen and various personnel changes led to an overall worse product. Ultimately, the team was one of the first eliminated from the playoffs and is still waiting on their first postseason win of the post-Brady Era.
Bill Belichick famously became the Patriots head coach after a one-day stint with the New York Jets. Announcing that he resigned as the HC of the NYJ, Belichick took over in New England at the start of the 2000 season. The team went 5-11 and started 0-2 in 2001 before Tom Brady took over for an injured Drew Bledsoe. From there, Belichick and his new quarterback established themselves as the NFL’s gold standard for the next two decades. The quarterback and coach combined to win 219 games, 30 playoff wins, and six Super Bowls, all of which were in the most in the league from 2001 to 2019.
Unfortunately, all great things must come to an end, and Brady left the team following the 2019 campaign. Since that point, Belichick has tried to rebuild the roster with minimal success. The Patriots have just one winning season in the four years without Brady, despite investing a first-round pick in a hand-selected franchise quarterback and setting a record for guaranteed money given out in free agency.
Main Photo: Mark Konezny – USA Today Sports
