Will New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft fire head coach Bill Belichick?
Not many years ago, the legendary Patriots head coach was at the helm of a Super Bowl-winning dynasty. Today, it appears that he’s fighting to keep his job.
While nobody doubts the length and breadth of Bill Belichick’s CV, the reality is that the Patriots have failed to deliver since the departure of the iconic Tom Brady. Be that as it may, football is a business and business is only good when you’re winning, which is not the case in New England.
Is Robert Kraft open to firing Bill Belichick?
To say that Bill Belichick is the greatest head coach in the history of the NFL would be to state the obvious. Where all-time achievements are concerned, the 71-year-old has recorded six Super Bowl wins, an NFL-record 31 career playoff victories, and 330 regular-season wins, numbers that few have come close to since his tenure in New England began back in 2000. Yet the reality is, that things have not been good over the last few years. Since Tom Brady’s exodus in 2020, the team has downright struggled, and that’s something that Bills owner, Robert Kraft is understandably not happy about.
According to The Athletic, it may be that Belichick’s days will soon be numbered if something doesn’t change soon. “There’s a school of thought that suggests Bill Belichick has earned the right to go out on his own accord, that the architect of the greatest dynasty in NFL history can coach in New England as long as he chooses,” The Athletic’s report states. “Kraft doesn’t subscribe to it.”
Does Bill Belichick deserve to be fired?
While it may seem harsh to many, the simple truth is that 2018 when they lost Super Bowl LIII to the Los Angeles Rams, was the last time the Patriots recorded any victories in the postseason. Indeed, since Brady left the team for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers where he won his seventh Super Bowl, the Pats have posted a record of 25-25. This brings us back to the present where it has to be said, the future does not look bright.
“Kraft likes to remind people he grew up as a Patriots fan during the organization’s darkest days,” the report states. “But that doesn’t mean he has the patience to endure more of them. On multiple occasions in recent years, he has lamented the team’s lack of a postseason victory in the post-Brady era. ...Kraft has grown frustrated, if not downright angry, over this shortage of success.” At this point, there is no official word that this will in fact be Belichick’s last season in New England. On the other hand, the Pats now sit on a 1-4 record as they prepare for Sunday’s Week 6 game against the Las Vegas Raiders, a team coached by former Patriots assistant, Josh McDaniels. While it might be an exaggeration to say this is Belichick’s last chance, something tells us the pressure is now well and truly on.