2023 has seen the Patriots struggle across the board, leading to questions about Bill Belichick‘s future in the organization. The 71-year-old appears to be safe for the remainder of this season, though, in part due to a renewed commitment the team made in him recently. 
Ian Rapoport of NFL Network reports the Patriots and Belichick agreed to a “lucrative, multiyear” extension this past offseason. While the terms of the pact remain unknown at this point, Rapoport noted on NFL GameDay Morning that it is in line to keep Belichick in place “long-term.” The six-time Super Bowl winner has been in New England since 2000, but the team’s 1-5 start has exposed shortcomings which have been increasingly criticized since Tom Brady‘s departure.
Belichick was thought by many to be facing a make-or-break season in 2023 with owner Robert Kraft delivering what amounted to a playoffs-or-bust ultimatum. While that was later walked back, expectations have nevertheless grown that 2023 could be Belichick’s final year before retiring or being replaced in his coaching and managing capacity. Even after today’s update, it very much remains to be seen if a changing of the guard will be delayed come the offseason.
As NBC Sports’ Tom E. Curran notes, the deal is unlikely to preclude a change being made following the 2023 campaign if one is deemed necessary by Kraft. Plenty of time remains in the season, but the Patriots are on track to miss the playoffs for the third time in the four years since Brady departed in free agency. His presumed long-term successor (Mac Jones) has not fared as well as expected under new OC Bill O’Brien, leading to speculation he could lose his starting role and highlighting the lack of organizational agreement on drafting him in the first place. Continued struggles from Jones and the offense will no doubt lead to increased calls for changes on the sidelines.
Indeed, Albert Breer of Sports Illustrated corroborates Curran’s note that 2024 could very well be a contract year for Belichick in the wake of his offseason deal. Details are unlikely to emerge on that front, given the Patriots’ secretive nature on such matters. Still, it is far from uncommon for NFL coaches to be let go with term remaining on their deals, so Belichick’s tenure should not be considered secure beyond the conclusion of the 2023 season.
Ha ha!
Love!
I’d love to see what Drake Maye could do with 2 years under Bill in New England
The tank for Drake is on
There have been so many unverified anonymous reports with New England that I’ll just take a wait and see with them. There’s the Bill O’Brien forced hiring thing, the Kraft picking Mac Jones thing, the Kraft talking McDaniels into giving up the Colts with the promise of the Pats head job thing…a lot of drama for a team that doesn’t say much. Who knows, maybe it’s because of the O’Brien thing. We can’t verify it unless they want to.
No matter what happens, who plays or who coaches, the Pats need to fix that offensive line. If in NE, that’s categorically my only concern at the moment. If not, Maye isn’t going to play any better than Jones is now.
Sports dynasties have an expiration date and I don’t think there’s any way of avoiding that reality no matter how many changes are made. I think it’s part of that Lion King “Circle of Life” credo.
Steelers have been consistently good to great since the 1970’s. Yes, in the waning years of Noll’s career, there were bad seasons. But B Cowher brought them back and Mike has never had a losing season in 15(?) seasons.
@arty as a Cowboy fan I say this with all due respect… winning is great. Love winning, who doesn’t. But if you don’t win the superbowl it doesn’t mean shyte.
I know what you’re saying. But HoF QB’s are rare & when you can constantly win w/ good QB play and solid built teams; it’s a sign of a well run team, front office, and coaches.
Looking pretty good today, but you’re right. They need an improved line & weapons for whoever QB’s them. And if Bill has the same amount of control, that’s pretty bleak. He’s not a good GM.
Needing a Gesicki TD to win in the final seconds after Buffalo took the lead inside the 2:00 warning is not “looking pretty good”.
A sub 500 team played well against & won against above 500 team is always good. Don’t you know the basics of sports? Guess not. Please keep commenting!
Old man that TIME has passed by
Good. All dynasties have bumps in the road. Celtics, Yankees, Lakers, etc. Anyone with half a brain knew that the Pats were going to go through a few rough seasons. You think replacing BB with someone else will magically turn the team around? Especially when the rumors abound that Jerod Mayo will take over? He’s never coached. Someday he may be very good, but this is still Bill’s team. Let him make the decision when to leave.
Somehow you have forgotten Manchester United, Arsenal, etc., etc.
Arsenal on the way back. United tho…..
A coach is only as good as the QB he has. That being said, Mac Jones is not a good QB
Scouted by Bill and vetted by his buddy Nick S. That’s on Bill. But BB always blames others for his failures.
I’m still not convinced that Matt Jones won’t have a second round of excellence in the right system. Jones is a moderately smart guy and hard worker with adequate physical gifts. He may grow into his NFL game. Drew Brees was hardly a physical specimen either.
Mac Jones will never be more than Mediocre and any team that thinks otherwise is just stupid. Jones is basically Kyle Orton/Brian Hoyer.
We’ll have to agree to disagree. Matt Jones showed a lot of promise in his rookie year and looked good in college too.
Belichick just needs to get back to basics and cheat more.
Boston Sports radio stations and you guys are missing what the point of ‘multi year’ extension means. That does NOT mean 2024 is a ‘contract year’. I know every non-Pats fans would love for him to be fired, but it ain’t happening. Even when the (multi-year) deal is up and doesn’t renew, he’ll leave on his own accord. Which will be way after he has the record.
The cheating comments are hilarious. Salty fans of crappy teams. You can’t cheat for 25 years, not sorry.
So you’re saying it’s okay if you cheat for just a few of those? Spygate and Deflategate happened, man. They may not have spanned 25 years, but it profoundly changes the narrative on one’s career when you steal victories. And yes, I said steal, not sorry.
He and Barry Bonds can hold each other tenderly and tell themselves that they would have been the greatest without cheating so the fact that they cheated shouldn’t be held against them…even though they cheated.
Sorry to impugn your vicarious victories by pointing out that cheating and winning are, in fact, not the same.
Upton Sinclair understands why you don’t see the difference.
Kraft should have used the opportunity to get Belichick to give up his GM duties.
I’m sure that even if Belichick has a multi-year extension, the exit penalty is no more than a single season of earnings, say about $10 or $15 million. If Kraft wants to get rid of Bill quickly, he can afford it.