Bill Belichick, a Boston legend and eight time super bowl winner-two as the defensive coordinator of the New York Giants, and six as the New England Patriots’ head coach-was not voted into the Hall of Fame when the voting was announced Feb. 5.
This decision is undeniably the worst snub in Hall of Fame history. Belichick is the most decorated head coach of all time, with by far the best playoff record, sitting at 31 wins and 11 losses. The next closest coach has only 21 wins.
It is imperative to note that the outrage for the snub is based on the fact that Belichick was not a “first-ballot” Hall of Famer. This will not be the coach’s only opportunity to be accepted into the hall as noted by NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell.
“Bill Belichick’s record goes without saying, same with the Patriots and Robert Kraft, who is also a candidate. They are spectacular. They have contributed so much to this game, and I believe they will be Hall of Famers.” said Goodell.
However professional the commissioner was about the ordeal, the fact that the 2nd most winningest coach in NFL history, and who has the most superbowl appearances and titles was not an obvious choice to the voters is dumbfounding.
If you ask me, I would say that Belichick’s performance after the exodus of Tom Brady, and his disappointing final years as an NFL coach weighed his decision down. Furthermore his underwhelming performance as the new University of North Carolina head coach also led to voter distrust and second thoughts of whether it was the coach, or the quarterback that made New England great.
The question has been quite perpetual, and once Tom Brady went to win his 7th super bowl with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, the success of the Patriots was placed much more upon the shoulders of Brady rather than Belichick.
While this line of logic is just, you can not discredit the role of a head coach in a program’s success. Just as the discredit of Bilechick’s achievements is semi-valid due to his poor performance in a post-Brady offense, the success of his team, especially the performance of his continuously top ranked defense easily outweighs the less-than-desirable end to his current NFL coaching tenure.
Overall, the countless accolades that Bill Belichick has accumulated throughout his career has made his first ballot snub inexcusable. The amount of disrespect given to a coach that set records that no coach may ever come close to again is unbelievable.
Amending this mistake is impossible and the stain of the failure of the hall of fame voters should and will live with the committee forever.
