Who will replace Bill Belichick at the Patriots and where will he coach next?

What once seemed impossible is now a reality. Bill Belichick won’t be back to coach the New England Patriots next season, putting an end to the longest partnership in the National Football League and arguably the greatest tenure of all time.

Belichick and the front office, namely team owner Robert Kraft, didn’t see eye to eye anymore. The team hasn’t been able to find success in the post-Tom Brady era, and it felt like this move was long overdue at this point.

Nonetheless, that doesn’t mean we’ve seen the last of Belichick. He’s still considered to be one of the greatest —if not the greatest— coaches in football history, and he’s just 14 wins behind the legendary Don Shula for the most wins of all time.

With that in mind, we’re going to summarize multiple reports to try and paint a clearer picture as to what went wrong, what’s next for the team, and potential destinations for the legendary Bill Belichick.

Head coach Bill Belichick of the New England Patriots looks on during the first half of a game against the Buffalo Bills at Highmark Stadium on December 31, 2023 in Orchard Park, New York.

No Hard Feelings, No Trades, Either

The Patriots had signed him to a contract extension, leading to speculation about a potential trade. That didn’t happen. Belichick is always one step — or two — ahead of the rest of us. He knew that agreeing to a trade meant taking picks away from the team he was about to join, and that’s not the way he rolls.

“The fact that Belichick and Kraft are going their own ways carries an element of sadness, but not surprise. Kraft had pointed out how important it was for the Patriots to make the playoffs this season. Instead, they were one of the first teams eliminated, on Dec. 10,” ESPN reported.

Why Did The Patriots Let Him Go?

Throughout the course of the season, there were multiple reports about the team’s discontent with Belichick, so this doesn’t strike as much of a surprise. He failed to develop Mac Jones, and he only made the playoffs once since Tom Brady left.

It felt like he never put his QB in a position to succeed by assigning him to work with Joe Judge and Matt Patricia, and he continued to make questionable decisions in terms of his coaching staff:

Bill Belichick, HC of the New England Patriots.

Belichick was convinced that the struggles of 2022 could be fixed with better and more intentional coaching, so he didn’t overhaul a roster that needed obvious help. That led to a disastrous 2023 where the Patriots played virtually every game with a worse roster than their opponent,” reported The Athletic.

Bill Belichick By The Numbers

Some want to take him down and believe there should be an asterisk next to his numbers, giving Tom Brady most of the credit for his success. Whether that’s the case or not, there’s just no way to take anything away from him.

He holds 17 division titles (most in NFL history), 9 conference championships (most by a head coach in the Super Bowl era), 12 Super Bowl appearances, 21 winning seasons as a head coach (5th most all-time), 6 Super Bowl rings, and coached one of the four undefeated regular seasons in NFL history (the first one under the 16-game schedule).

Who Are The Top Candidates To Replace Bill Belichick?

According to Chad Graff of The Athletic, there could be as many as ten candidates to replace the legendary coach. Nonetheless, former Patriots players Jerod Mayo and Mike Vrabel could be ahead of the rest of the pack:

Mike Vrabel, HC of the Tennessee Titans.

“All eyes turn now to two people – Jerod Mayo, the current linebackers coach, and Mike Vrabel, who was just fired by the Titans after a six-year run there where he went 54-45,” wrote Graff.

Where Could He Coach Next?

With as many as seven potential vacancies, we know Belichick is only going to go to a place where he can be in full control of decision-making, from player personnel to his coaching staff. With that in mind, the Washington Commanders seem like the most logical destination:

“There aren’t many teams with openings that have a willingness to pay Belichick and hand over all power in their personnel department. But one spot that might is the Washington Commanders, where new owner Josh Harris seems poised to make a splash,” Graff reported.