It’s officially the end of an era in Foxborough. Four years after Tom Brady packed his bags, the New England Patriots are parting ways with longtime coach Bill Belichick, who led the franchise to six Super Bowl rings — all of them with TB12 under center.
NFL insiders Ian Rapoport and Adam Schefter reported the news early on Thursday, before Robert Kraft and Belichick made a joint announcement in a press conference. Shortly after the confirmation, Brady took to Instagram to share some heartelt words for his former coach.
“I’m incredibly grateful to have played for the best coach in the history of the NFL,” Brady wrote. “He was a great leader for the organization, and for all of the players who played for him. We accomplished some amazing things over a long period of time, many of which will be hard to replicate. he worked every day to help us achieve the ultimate goal, in the ultimate team sport. And, although we were successful, some of the greatest lessons I learned were in the moments where we faced the most challenging adversities.
“He set the tone for the organization to never falter in the face of adversity, and to do what we could do, and what was in our control, which was to go out and DO OUR JOB. I could never have been the player I was without you Coach Belichick. I am forever grateful. And I wish you the best of luck in whatever you choose next.“
Many things have been said about Brady and Belichick since the quarterback left New England, but the truth is they’ve always shown nothing but respect for each other. After all, they were arguably the best QB-coach duo in football history.
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Belichick struggled without Brady
Perhaps the only stain in Belichick’s unforgettable tenure in Foxborough is his lack of success in the post-Brady era. While the coach cemented a legacy with TB12 at quarterback, the team was a shell of the old Patriots after Brady’s departure.
The first year without him was obviously challenging, with the Patriots finishing third in the AFC East at 7-9 after a year of transition with Cam Newton taking the offensive reins. That same year, Brady won the Super Bowl with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in his first season away from New England.
Belichick made a quarterback change for 2021, removing Newton to make room for first-round pick Mac Jones. That may have been the only decent season since Brady left. The Alabama product was up to the task, helping the Patriots make the playoffs with a 10-7 record. However, the Bills outplayed them 47-17 in the Wild Card game. And eventually, the hopes that Jones would be the Patriots’ next franchise quarterback seemed to fade away.
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Both Jones and the Patriots took many steps back in 2022, in which they missed out on the postseason at 8-9. After months of rumors in the same offseason Brady retired for good, Belichick ultimately kept Jones at QB1 for the 2023 season. But nothing went to plan.
Belichick could pursue a ring outside New England, like Brady did
Following a terrible start to the season, Belichick benched Jones during games. The coach definitely lost his confidence in the third-year QB in Week 13, when he named Bailey Zappe as starter. That didn’t prevent Belichick from suffering the worst season in his coaching career though, with New England finishing bottom of the AFC East at 4-13.
While widely respected for his unprecedented success, Belichick started to be seriously questioned after Brady moved, and in the end, the Patriots’ poor campaign in 2023 sealed his fate. But his coaching career is not over yet, so it will be interesting to see if he can succeed elsewhere like Brady did.
