Is Bill Belichick Retiring As Patriots Head Coach?

It’s rumor central down here in the cesspool of Twitter now that the NFL season concluded late last night with a Philadelphia Eagles upset Super Bowl victory over the reigning champion, New England Patriots.

It’s no surprise being that at this time of year there are consistently rumors that form that always seem to range from having some concrete evidence behind them, to holding absolutely no merit in the slightest.

There are always the few that strike your mind that cause you to ponder whether or not the scenario speculated could play out in the future. And then there are those that from the get go, it is something constructed simply to cause a rise in the tension of the NFL fanbase.

There is one rumor that was sparked from a reputable source, Pro Football Talk, via Twitter, in the early evening right around kickoff yesterday.

Hey folks, there definitely are well-connected people in NFL circles who aren’t ruling out a Belichick retirement and McDaniels getting the job.

— ProFootballTalk (@ProFootballTalk) February 4, 2018

Because there is no article and it seems to hold no substance at the moment, I wouldn’t say it’s time to panic just yet, New England. It reads to me as something that may just be one of those, we’ll throw it at the wall and see if it sticks, type of tweets. But be honest with yourself for a minute, how far off could this tweet be?

Let’s look at it from these few angels. The man already has five Super Bowl rings as an NFL head coach and at the time of this tweet, he was mining away at attempting to achieve his sixth.

He is already viewed by most NFL fans and NFL professionals as the greatest coach in the history of the sports. Not only that, but he is also seen by many as the greatest coach in the history of sports period.

Okay so we have accomplishments and enshrinement as the greatest of all time, but could there be any negatives that may force Belichick into a retirement that could possibly be earlier than planned?

Let’s refer back to the Seth Wickersham piece. I for one am someone who believes that a decent portion of Wickersham’s ESPN article withstood some truth. The section of that piece that I personally believe to be true is that Kraft had some influence in Belichick holding on to Brady and in return, being nudged to trade what he saw as the perfect succession plan, Jimmy Garoppolo, to San Francisco.

And remember, this is just speculation on my end of things. If anything were to be true in Wickersham’s piece though, I would believe that portion to hold the most accuracy.

And to round it out there’s the fact that he’s a 65 year old man working within a career that forces you to labor for hundreds of hours per week with immense pressure on your shoulders.

In a world where this could come to fruition, would McDaniels actually become the next head coach?

At the time that this blog was written, Josh McDaniels has yet to be officially named the next head coach of the team that he is presumed to join, the Indianapolis Colts, while his fellow coordinator for the 2017 Patriots, Matt Patricia, as already assumed his new role as head coach of the Detroit Lions.

Truthfully I was slightly taken aback by Patricia accepting his new role just one day after the Super Bowl, but perhaps he was just excited about his new opportunity – or he was just ready to bolt out of this possible toxic situation that could be brewing in New England.

Backtracking to the tweet above, once again, it seems as though it is only speculation – but it refers to “well-connected people in NFL circles…”. With the way the year ended and honestly, with the feel around the team that seems palpable based on what we fans can see via the media, I’m not fully invested in the belief that Belichick returns to his office at Gillette Stadium at the start of training camp.

What do I think? I think Belichick comes back next season. Do I have a slight disdain for the coach at the moment? Being a New England Patriots fan, I absolutely do.

To put it lightly, I think he royally screwed the Patriots out of a Super Bowl victory last night.

To sit your prolific cornerback who has shown grit and passion for the game for you since the 2014 Super Bowl because of what it seems like, a minor incident? That is something that is going to take a long time for him to come back from to some fans because in my eyes, that lost you the game and a title.

Unless Malcolm Butler murdered someone prior to kickoff, he plays in that game. I understand he’s got an ego the size of Texas, and I understand your precious team rules, but for once let’s try and put the team ahead of your pride, Belichick. Don’t lie to the fans and say that you did what was best for the team, because you didn’t. You screwed the team and you embarrassed Malcolm Butler on the national stage. It’s inexcusable to not allow someone one snap, who was apart of just under 98% of your defensive snaps throughout the year.

Does Belichick return next season to the Patriots? I’m going to say yes. If he doesn’t however and McDaniels takes over, at this moment, I wouldn’t be crushed. Thank you for everything that you have done Bill, but if McDaniels was the next guy up if you happen to step down, I would definitely feel like that patriots would be in good hands considering he has been apart of the system for so many years.

Lastly, if McDaniels were to assume the position as the Patriots head coach if this unlikely scenario were to unfold, it would be a royal screw job to the Indianapolis Colts by once again, the New England Patriots. I would have to imagine that if given the opportunity, McDaniels would accept this job here in Foxborough, Massachusetts rather than Indianapolis Indiana. And as a Patriots fan, I would love McDaniels that much more for completely pantsing the Colts franchise.

Buckle up New England because I think this week is going to get very, very interesting.

Written By: Nick Quaglia (@NickQuag)