14 January 2023 , 13:41
1041
0
New England Patriots head coach Bill Belichick has been told that he has been exposed without Tom Brady as his quarterback.
After the 2019 season, Brady shocked the NFL world when he decided to leave the New England Patriots to join the Tampa Bay Buccaneers after 20 years alongside Belichick.
The two formed the greatest head coach and quarterback duo, arguably of all-time, winning six Super Bowl rings together and making nine appearances in the big game.
But since Brady left the Patriots, the team has struggled to maintain the levels that they had been at over the previous two decades, having now missed the playoffs in two out of three seasons.
Whilst their level of play at quarterback has decreased, with Mac Jones struggling to emulate Brady's greatness, their coaching has surprisingly been a cause of concern.
Joe Burrow backs Patrick Mahomes after Kansas City Chiefs reach Super Bowl
There have been a number of gaffes by the coaching staff, with questionable decision-making and poor execution, with the tide now turning in the AFC East, with the Patriots arguably in the worst situation in comparison to their division rivals.
NFL Hall of Famer, Shannon Sharpe said on his FOX Sports UNDISPUTED show: "The days of them being reigning over the AFC East are over. Tom Brady is in Tampa now, although he may not be after this season."
Sharpe went on to rip Belichick for not hiring a traditional offensive coordinator, after they had chosen to re-hire former defensive coach Matt Patricia to coach the team's offense - something that he had not done throughout his NFL coaching career.
Tom Brady returned to New England to defeat the Patriots in 2021 (Photo by Adam Glanzman/Getty Images)Sharpe said: "What was Bill Belichick thinking? He thinks his genius is so great that he thinks he can take a guy who has never called an offensive play and they'll be just fine.
"You look at Mac Jones, he was clearly frustrated this season after an impressive rookie year. Now, would you take Jones over any quarterback in the playoffs? I would not. "
His co-host, Skip Bayless added: "I did state that Belichick would get exposed with Tom Brady and I now believe that it has happened. And now I believe the Patriots are stuck with Bill Belichick. I don't want the Patriots owner, Robert Kraft, to feel like the man to axe the legendary Belichick.
"He was an average quarterback before Tom Brady joined and he now looks like that again. They are top 10 in penalties, they are dead last in redzone touchdowns and they have been terrible on special teams - how many mistakes have we seen from them this season?
"I felt sorry for Mac Jones this season with a defensive coach as his offensive coordinator."
The Patriots are now reportedly looking to add an offensive coordinator for the upcoming season, with quarterback Jones visibly frustrated with the coaches play-calling at times throughout the campaign.