There is no doubt that the future of any team depends on who leads them. For many reasons, there is speculation about what may happen to the New England Patriots in the coming years. Bill Belichick currently leads the National Football League (NFL) team. From the perspective of team owner Robert Kraft, that is the goal for the future as well.
Is He Staying On?
In a news segment, Josh McDaniels made a comment noting that he would not be surprised if Bill Belichick would be “roaming the sidelines at the Foxborough stadium” still a decade from now. Noting that statement, Patriots owner Robert Kraft seemed to agree with him. He reportedly made a comment that he would be completely fine with the coach holding onto the same job long term.
Bill Belichick is not looking to retire any time soon either. According to some reports, Belichick plans to coach the New England team well into his 80s. The conversation began thanks to his birthday. He turned 70, and that sparked conversations about whether or not the coach would decide to hang up his career and retire on the incredible success the team has had for a long time.
According to a conversation that occurred with Pro Football Talk’s Mike Florio, Robert Kraft stated that he believed Belichick wanted to coach longer. His statement was that “ Robert Kraft told me that he wants to see Bill Belichick coach into his 80s. He wants to see him perform at a high level like Warren Buffet or a Rupert Murdoch well past his 80th birthday – he believes he can.”
There is a lot of speculation and discussion over the topic, but most people believe Belichick is in it for the long term. McDaniels, who is a former Patriots assistant coach and this year will be the head coach for the Las Vegas Raiders, had his opinion as well. According to him, he does not see his boss (Belichick) stepping away at any time.
In an interview with NBC Sports’ Peter King, McDaniels stated, “He still attacks the job the same now that I saw him attack it when I first started in 2001.” He then continued, “Doesn’t matter what part of the year it is. The big thing that Bill has going for him and has always done is he loves all the facets of the football season, whether it’s scouting, preparation for a game, roster evaluation, team building, development pats of the year for the young players. All of those things get weighted the same for him.”
A Long History of Success in Coaching
Belichick has been on that sideline for a long time. There is no doubt the team has seen a lot of success with him there. However, it has not always been a positive experience. For example, in 2009, the season had just ended, and the Patriots had lost to the Ravens in a wild card round game in the playoffs. At that point, Belichick stated, “You definitely miss a lot during football season. Family stuff, holidays, and kids stuff when they’re young, their games.” He then continued, “The world passes you by. I have a hard time picturing not coaching football at this point. I won’t be like Marv Levy and coaching in my 70s. You won’t have to worry about that. Fortunately, that’s a few years off.” He made the comments when he was 57.
About Robert Kraft
Robert Kraft is the current owner of the Patriots and has been the owner since 1994. In the time since he purchased the team, the team has won 331 games, including playoffs creating an average of 12.3 wins per season. Kraft is also the founder, chairman, and CEO of the Kraft Group. He is an entrepreneur, investor, and philanthropist.
See more recent news about Robert Kraft here: https://www.thecrimson.com/article/2022/4/19/robert-craft-hbs-donation/