As Bill Belichick closed the door on his time with the Patriots, more details have started to emerge about how things unraveled in his final years at the helm.
Belichick and the team mutually parted ways on Thursday, ending a 24-year run that included six Super Bowl victories, nine AFC championships, 17 AFC East titles and 296 combined regular-season and playoff victories.
But it was in 2019 that the shine started to wear off a bit more, and the signs of what was to come started to appear, according to Sports Illustrated’s Albert Breer.
At the time, the Patriots scouting staff had been particularly high on South Carolina’s Deebo Samuel and Ole Miss’ A.J. Brown, but Belichick had some doubts after the pair visited together.
Because of their “jovial” attitude, Belichick didn’t think the two were taking their visit “seriously,” wrote Breer.
Belichick then started to look more in-depth at Arizona State’s N’Keal Harry, who started to look more appealing after an impressive visit with New England combined with the recommendations of trusted confidants Todd Graham and Herm Edwards.
The Patriots ended up selecting Harry and left tackle Isaiah Wynn, which failed to fill critical positions for the team going forward.
Harry was traded to the Bears before the 2022 season, and Wynn signed with the rival Dolphins before the 2023 campaign.
Brown and Samuel, on the other hand, have combined for four Pro Bowl appearances.
What we know about the split between the Patriots and Bill Belichick
The Patriots and Bill Belichick will reportedly part ways on Thursday after 24 years and six Super Bowl wins.
Rumors had swirled around Belichick’s future all season as the Patriots finished with a 4-13 record and missed the playoffs for the third time in four seasons. Belichick met with Patriots owner Robert Kraft over the past several days before reaching the mutual decision.
Belichick notched a 266-121 overall record with the Patriots and has another 31 playoff victories.
The 71-year-old has no plans to retire, and needs just 15 more wins to match Don Shula’s all-time wins record — regular season and playoffs — by a head coach in NFL history.
The Falcons, who fired Arthur Smith after the season, are the most likely suitor for Belichick, according to ESPN.
Patriots inside linebackers coach Jerod Mayo is the favorite to replace Belichick with Mike Vrabel, who was fired by the Titans, also a possibility. Others with prior ties to the Patriots, including Brian Flores and Josh McDaniels, could be in the mix as well.
The episode, according to Breer, made scouts in the organization feel as if they weren’t being heard and that Belichick was listening to information from outside the team over work they had put in over a number of months.
This, in part, shaped how the 2023 season played out, which ultimately led to Patriots owner Robert Kraft deciding it was time to move the franchise in a different direction.
“For me this is a day of gratitude and celebration,” Belichick said Thursday. “We had a vision of building a winner, building a championship football team here. And it exceeded my wildest dreams and expectations — the amount of success we were able to achieve together through a lot of hard work and the contributions of so many people.”
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