Bill Belichick Joins List of Departing Coaches

Article ByKyle Garlett

January 11, 2024

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Posted in: US Sports Betting News, US Gambling News

The most decorated NFL coach is leaving New England.

For 24 years, Bill Belichick has been synonymous with the New England Patriots. For the last 23 of those years, he has been synonymous with Super Bowl championships. Six times as the head coach of the Patriots, Belichick lifted the Lombardi Trophy. No other head coach in NFL history has more than four, and only three others have more than two.

But plaguing Belichick is that he couldn’t get back to the Super Bowl, or even field a competitive team, without Tom Brady. His long-time quarterback won a seventh Super Bowl title in Tampa Bay, but the Patriots haven’t won a playoff game since Brady left.

In 2023, the Patriots finished below .500 for the second straight year, and they won just four games for the first time in more than 30 years. When the 2023 season began, online sportsbooks in Massachusetts had seven wins as the over/under for the Patriots season.

Belichick is still a great coach, but he was undone in recent years by Belichick the general manager. The Patriots roster was devoid of talent after several missteps in the first round of the draft – N’Keal Harry in 2019, Mac Jones in 2021, and Cole Strange in 2022.

The Patriots also haven’t had the success in free agency that they had in the past. In 2008, they signed one of the biggest free agent prizes ever in future Hall of Fame wide receiver Randy Moss. In his first year in New England, Moss set the NFL record with 23 receiving touchdowns.

The big wide receiver signing this year was JuJu Smith-Schuster, who finished the season with just 29 catches.

The Future for Bill Belichick

If Belichick is amenable to giving up roster control, he would be an attractive candidate on the current head coaching carousel. At Bovada.lv, you can find Belichick among the favorites to land a new head coaching job in the NFL. To be the next head coach of the Los Angeles Chargers, Belichick is paying +750. For the Atlanta Falcons open position, he is paying +300.

While the final years of Belichick’s time in New England doesn’t put him on many head coaching shortlists, his level of consistently winning in a league that prides itself on parity is undeniable. His Patriots hold the record for most consecutive division titles with 11. Overall, he made the playoffs in 18 of his 24 seasons in New England. He won at least 12 games in an NFL-record eight straight years. And along with his six Super Bowl titles, he had a record nine Super Bowl appearances.

Belichick is currently 14 wins behind Don Shula for No. 1 overall. He wants to coach and pursue the record, and now that he has been released from his duties with the Patriots, he will no longer cost potential suitors in a trade. For teams looking to make a splash hire and generate excitement among their fans, there is no one splashier than Belichick.

Along with the Chargers and Falcons, online NFL sportsbooks also like Washington as a possible destination. It’s where Vince Lombardi finished up his coaching career, and new owner Josh Harris likes to make big moves. The odds that he is the next coach of the Commanders stand at +400.

Jerod Mayo, a former Patriot and the Pats linebackers coach since 2019, is +175 to become the next head coach in New England. Mike Vrabel, who was just fired in Tennessee, won a Super Bowl as a Patriots linebacker. His odds to be the next head coach are +225.