Bill Belichick Signed A Big Extension, But That Doesn't Mean He Stays

Published•Updated

Bill Belichick is inarguably one of the greatest football coaches of all time. But 2023 is shaping up to be the worst season of his storied career.

Once a perennial Super Bowl contender, Belichick's New England Patriots are 1-5. They're off to their worst start since 1995 — well before Bill took over. Worse, the Pats are in the middle of a three-game losing streak, during which they've scored only 20 points and are four games behind the AFC East-leading Miami Dolphins.

In other words, these aren't your daddy's Patriots.

Thus, many fans have speculated this season could be the end of the Belichick era in Foxboro. That is, until NFL Network's Ian Rapoport dropped some spicy news on Sunday's pregame show.

"Sources say Bill Belichick during the offseason quietly agreed to terms on a lucrative, multi-year, new contract," Rapoport said. "Now, contractually, he is locked up long term."

Despite a disastrous start to this season, Belichick's track record speaks for itself.

The 71-year-old has nine Super Bowl appearances as a head coach with six wins — both NFL records. He also has the most playoff wins (31) and most divisional championships (17) as a head coach. And he's not too far from breaking another league record.

With 299 wins heading into Sunday, Belichick is just 30 wins away from breaking Don Shula's record for the most regular season wins by a head coach in NFL history.

But watching his squad this season, 30 more wins seems like a faraway pipe dream.

Bill Belichick Signed A Big Extension, But That Doesn't Mean He Stays

(Photo by Winslow Townson/Getty Images)

Is a divorce coming between the Patriots and Bill Belichick?

Up to this point, Patriots ownership has remained quiet about Belichick's future with the franchise. And on the surface, the news of his "lucrative" contract extension might seem to put to bed the rumor that the future Hall of Fame coach is going anywhere else, anytime soon.

But not so fast.

As OutKick's Armando Salguero has pointed out, "The Patriots are a money-making machine." And owner Robert Kraft is filthy rich. If Belichick doesn't deliver the results he expects, don't underestimate the idea that Kraft will make the call to cut ties — regardless of how much cash is tied up in the new deal.

After all, Kraft has made it clear that winning football games is the standard.

"Look, I'd like him to break Don Shula's record, but I'm not looking for any of our players to get great stats," Kraft said at the NFL Owners' Meetings in March. "We're about winning, and doing whatever we can to win. And that's what our focus is now. It's very important to me that we make the playoffs, and that's what I hope happens next year."

Bill Belichick Signed A Big Extension, But That Doesn't Mean He Stays

(Photo by Billie Weiss/Getty Images)

I don't have a crystal ball, but barring several miracles, the Patriots are not making the playoffs in 2023.

So Kraft & Co. will have a decision to make.

If they do let Belichick go, the Patriots may be on the hook to pay part of his salary above whatever he gets from a new team. That puts penny-pinching teams (say, the Los Angeles Chargers) who couldn't normally afford Belichick on the radar.

After building a franchise into a 20-year, dominant dynasty, maybe Belichick has earned a down year or two to turn things around. The question now is, how long is Robert Kraft willing to wait?

Follow Amber on X at @TheAmberHarding or email her at Amber.Harding@OutKick.com.