New England Patriots expected to part ways with longtime coach Bill Belichick

The New England Patriots are expected to part ways with head coach Bill Belichick, according to ESPN’s Adam Schefter and Mike Reiss. He headed the organization for 24 years.

During his stint as Patriots head coach, Belichick won six Super Bowl titles and developed multiple All-Pros, including, most famously, quarterback Tom Brady.

That duo became the face of the NFL for multiple decades as they routinely finished atop the AFC East and made deep runs into the playoffs.

But Bill Belichick’s success with the organization began to decline when Brady left following the 2019 season. Brady, meanwhile, would go on to win a Super Bowl with his new team, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

New England went 7-9 the season after Brady departed, then managed to improve to 10-7 the following year in 2021. But neither season included an AFC East title and 2021’s playoff appearance ended in an exit in the Wild Card round.

Then the wheels began to fall off.

New England went 8-9 in 2022 but finished just 4-13 in 2023. Worse, the organization didn’t seem to have much positive momentum heading into the offseason.

So the organization made a change.

But nothing will take away from one of the greatest coaching runs in college football history. Even before Bill Belichick’s ouster his players were speaking out on his behalf.

One of the most recent to join the team, running back Ezekiel Elliott opened up on what playing for Belichick was like.

“I just feel so very lucky,” Elliott said, according to Boston.com. “So very lucky to play for the best coach ever. And you can tell just by the way he attacks every day, the way he demands excellence from everyone and everything you do, from top to bottom. I mean, he just loves to coach and you’re going to be coached up. So I’m very appreciative to be able to play for him. … I was expecting a great coach, and that’s what he was.

“I didn’t expect him to be as sarcastic, as funny — the way he coaches me. He’s gonna get on you, but he’ll build you up too at the same time and that’s what we all need and want as football players.”