The New England Patriots finished the 2023 season with a 4-13 record, the worst of Belichick's coaching career; the 71-year-old, appointed as Patriots head coach in 2000, steered the team to six wins from nine Super Bowl appearances, the last of those coming in the 2018 season
Thursday 11 January 2024 20:45, UK
Bill Belichick has left the New England Patriots after 24 seasons as head coach.
A loss to the New York Jets on Sunday saw the Patriots end the season with a 4-13 record, the worst of the 71-year-old's tenure, during which he led the team to six Super Bowl rings.
Patriots owner Robert Kraft and Belichick addressed the media on Thursday, with confirmation of the departure announced at 5pm.
"For me, this is a day of gratitude and celebration, I'm thankful for the opportunity to be a coach here for 24 years," Belichick said.
"We had a vision of building a winning football team here and that exceeded my wildest dreams and expectations. The amount of success we were able to achieve together through a lot of hard work and contributions of so many people.
"I've been fortunate enough to coach some of the best players for the Patriots. I respect the way the players come here to work and their ability to prepare, train their bodies and rehearse over and over again."
"I will always be a Patriot and I'm looking forward to the future."
Belichick was appointed as Patriots head coach in 2000 before going on to steer the team to six wins from nine Super Bowl appearances - including three in four seasons - as well as clinching 17 AFC East division titles and playing in four more AFC Championship Games while reaching the playoffs on 18 occasions.
For the best part of two decades Belichick and future Hall of Fame quarterback Tom Brady spearheaded New England's iconic dynasty as the most prolific head coach-quarterback tandem in NFL history.
Since Brady's departure following the 2019 season, the Patriots struggled to maintain their dominance, returning a winning record in only one of the following four seasons when going 10-7 in 2021, where they were comfortably beaten by the Buffalo Bills in the first round of the playoffs.
Brady, meanwhile, won a seventh Super Bowl with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in 2020.
Belichick is currently ranked third in the list of all-time career victories by a head coach with 302, leaving him 16 shy of George Halas and 26 away from the great Don Shula's record.
He established himself as the league's most influential and dominant defensive mind as he dictated schematic trends, while overseeing a famed recruitment policy that would see New England construct their Championship-winning rosters with cut-price deals and savvy contracts.
"I am very proud that our partnership lasted 24 years. I don't think in the NFL there has been a partnership that lasted longer and has been as productive as ours," said Patriots owner Kraft.
"Bill and I had high expectations of what we could achieve together and I think it's safe to say we exceeded them, thanks to him.
"This is a very emotional day for me, some of my happiest moments were celebrated with my family during Bill's tenure. I recognise that it is also a very emotional day for many of our fans as it represents the end of an era."
Sky Sports NFL's Neil Reynolds said of Belichick: "He is the greatest coach in NFL history, overseeing a period of unseen dominance.
"He has guided Patriots to six Super Bowl titles and nine finals at a time when the NFL is supposed to have a level playing field.
"You shouldn't be able to do what Belichick has done, which makes it an incredible run.
"He is a master tactician, a disciplined coach, very old school. You can't tell the whole story of the NFL without a chapter or two, or three or four, on Belichick."
Tom Brady, who won six of his seven Super Bowl titles with Belichick at the New England Patriots, said he learnt some of his "greatest lessons" under Belichick.
"I'm incredibly grateful to have played for the best coach in the history of the NFL," Brady wrote in an Instagram post.
"He was a great leader for the organization, and for all of the players who played for him. We accomplished some amazing things over a long period of time, many of which will be hard to replicate. He worked every day to help us achieve the ultimate goal, in the ultimate team sport.
"And, although we were successful, some of the greatest lessons I learned were in the moments where we faced the most challenging adversities. He set the tone for the organization to never falter in the face of adversity, and to do what we could do, and what was in our control, which was to go out and do our job.
"I could never have been the player I was without you Coach Belichick. I am forever grateful. And I wish you the best of luck in whatever you choose next."
Despite being in his 70s, there is an expectation that Belichick wishes to continue coaching in the NFL, with Reynolds believing Los Angeles Chargers and Washington Commanders are his most likely destinations.
Reynolds said: "He turns 72 in April but I don't think he's done, he's a lifer. He will want a fresh start and after operating in a team for the last few years without a good quarterback, I wonder if he will look at teams that have a good quarterback or can get one in the draft.
"Los Angeles Chargers, Washington Commanders. There is talk about the Atlanta Falcons but I don't think they have a quarterback in place.
"Belichick will coach on, in my opinion, and there are reportedly seven teams interested in him so he will get a job in 2024. For his legacy he will want to bounce back quick, so my money would be on the Chargers or the Commanders."
It is rumoured that Belichick's replacement in New England could be recently fired Tennessee Titans head coach Mike Vrabel.
The former linebacker won three Super Bowls while playing under Belichick with the Patriots as a player and the 48-year-old has since established himself as one of the most respected coaches in the league.
Taking over the Titans in 2018, Vrabel guided Tennessee to the playoffs in three of his six seasons, advancing as far as the AFC Championship Game in 2019, where his side were beaten by the Kansas City Chiefs.
Vrabel was named Coach of the Year in 2021 but is coming off two successive losing seasons after seeing the Titans finish the 2023 campaign 6-11. He leaves with an overall 54-44 record with the team.
Reynolds added of Vrabel: "He is an excellent coach, motivates his players and is a master tactician as well. An intelligent coach who knows what the players are going through and relates so well to them. If I'm the Patriots, that's where I'm looking."
