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Dan Wetzel
Multiple Authors
If Bill Belichick isn’t deemed a Hall of Fame coach, as the committee responsible for such designations believes, then one might as well disregard the Pro Football Hall of Fame entirely.
According to a report by ESPN’s Don Van Natta Jr. and Seth Wickersham on Tuesday, the legendary Belichick did not receive enough support for enshrinement during the Jan. 13 voting session.
This marked Belichick’s first ballot appearance, and while he will have more opportunities in the future, it is utterly ridiculous that he didn’t achieve at least 80% support from the 50-member selection committee. Put simply, at least 11 voters did not include him on their ballots.
Regardless of whether it’s the voters, the voting process, or their arrogance, the absurdity remains unchanged. If the intention was to penalize Belichick due to Spygate, his brusque demeanor, his tabloid-worthy personal life, or his 4-8 season at the University of North Carolina, then that aim failed miserably.
The disgrace lies solely with the committee and, subsequently, the Hall of Fame itself.
Most voters are long-time NFL veterans or current and former media members, including Hall of Famers like former Indianapolis Colts coach Tony Dungy and general manager Bill Polian.
Van Natta and Wickersham revealed that Polian suggested to fellow voters that Belichick should “wait a year” due to the 2007 Spygate incident, wherein the New England Patriots were found to have recorded the New York Jets’ coaching signals from an unauthorized spot.
Since when did retrospective morality become part of this process?
The final outcome shocked even the committee members, who cast their votes anonymously and are unaware of the results. One member expressed disbelief, recalling a Zoom meeting where the scandals were mentioned in a lackluster manner, leading that voter to expect Belichick would be easily inducted. They even noted that someone remarked it would be “embarrassing” for the committee if he didn’t make it.
It certainly is.
Belichick has won 301 regular-season games as a head coach in Cleveland and, most notably, New England. Only Don Shula and George Halas have more. He additionally boasts 31 postseason victories, more than anyone else, along with 17 division titles, nine AFC championships, and six Super Bowls—all the highest in history.
He has designed innovative offensive strategies, cutting-edge game plans, and has pursued perfection with unwavering discipline. At one point, New England achieved an 18-0 record, coming painfully close to a perfect season.
As a defensive coordinator with the New York Giants, he secured two additional Super Bowls, including the 1986 squad that allowed a mere 23 points over three playoff games.
Here’s how discussions regarding his candidacy should have unfolded:
“Next up, Bill Belichick.”
“In.”
Seriously, what are we accomplishing here? The Hall of Fame serves as a museum, a delightful place for families, a venue to reminisce about historical achievements, and a location to buy souvenirs. Belichick’s teams and players are already featured prominently within the Hall. You simply cannot narrate the history of football without his influence. He has inspired everything from tattered hoodies to memorable quotes.
The debate shouldn’t revolve around whether he belongs in the Hall of Fame; instead, it should center on whether he’s the greatest coach of all time. The only criticism levied against him is that he couldn’t achieve greatness without Tom Brady. Fine, debate that if you must, but it wasn’t the threshold he needed to surpass.
My apologies to other Hall of Fame coaches whose achievements don’t warrant comparison, but …
Don Coryell finished with a record of 111-83-1, won just three playoff games, and never made it to a Super Bowl. Tom Flores managed two Super Bowl victories but recorded merely six winning seasons in his entire career. Marv Levy never claimed a Lombardi Trophy.
We could continue.
If they deserve their spots—no one is contesting that—then how does Belichick not qualify? If an individual’s accomplishments aren’t the benchmark, then what criteria should apply?
Does Belichick need to adopt a more polite demeanor at press conferences? Should he have played nice with his colleagues?
Regarding Belichick’s past conflicts with the rulebook, he isn’t blameless, but Deflategate was never attributed to him directly; that blame was solely placed on Brady. though the NFL did find him liable in Spygate, he and the franchise accepted the penalties, which included a $500,000 fine for Belichick and a $250,000 fine plus the forfeiture of a first-round pick for the Patriots.
If anything, the ongoing success despite the loss of draft capital should be seen as a positive.
Nowhere in the Spygate penalties was there any directive for Hall voters to readdress that issue in the future. If the NFL desired to prevent his enshrinement—akin to how MLB effectively banned Pete Rose—then that falls on them. It isn’t the responsibility of the Hall voters to fulfill the leagues’ wishes.
But here we stand.
Bill Belichick, arguably the most clear-cut first-ballot Hall of Famer in history, has not been inducted on the first ballot.
The committee itself deserves to be dismissed.
