Bill Belichick's New England Patriots era might have had 'rock bottom' ending
Bill Belichick's legendary New England Patriots reign is expected to end on a low, with the eight-time Super Bowl-winning coach leaving the NFL franchise in the "worst way".
The Patriots and Belichick have largely suffered since the quarterback Tom Brady's departure in 2019. New England made just one postseason appearance post-Brady. To make things worse, 2023 was their worst season since Belichick's 2000 arrival.
The Patriots won just four games from 17 and the team finished bottom of the AFC East. There will be an opportunity to rebuild as a result of the disastrous 2023 season, with New England holding the third-overall 2024 NFL Draft pick.
The Patriots also hold the 34th, 68th, 103rd, 135th, 181st, and 228th picks. However, it's unlikely Belichick will be the man to lead that rebuild. The team lost 17-3 to the New York Jets on Sunday, officially drawing the curtain on the 2023 season, and also likely Belichick's reign in New England. The Ringer CEO, Bill Simmons, believes New England and Belichick are at "rock bottom" and expects a split.
Simmons said on his podcast: "Here's how it ends for him. He loses 17-3 to the team he hates the most, the New York Jets, in a snowstorm, he's sick, and if he didn't feel sick during the game it got worse when he watched Bailey Zappe.
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"One of the worst football games of all time. If this isn't rock bottom I don't know what else I would have added. He was dressed like he was Jack Torrence in the shining about to walk through the maze. I don't understand it.
"The big thing is he was 36-44 in Cleveland, he was 5-13 with Drew Bledsoe, he was 11-5 with Matt Cassel, then he was 29-38 after Brady. It's just mediocrity everywhere apart from that Cassel season where they didn't make the playoffs.
The Patriots finished 2023 with just four regular season wins (Getty)"The reality is all his success came with Brady. I think he's the greatest coach of all time, I was there day in day out watching him and supporting the team, he did 100 million things that made me think we can't say it was all because of Brady. But the way these last four years have gone opens the door for that argument, it's a bummer, but the reality is they needed each other.
"I think it's over, all the indications seem to be that the Patriots are ready to move on. Maybe he takes a year off, maybe someone trades for him, but it really does seem like it's over, and this is the worst way for it to end.”
Belichick is expected to hold talks with team owner Robert Kraft on Monday morning, and is also expected to give a press conference later in the day, with reports suggesting his departure may be made official later in the week.
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