The New England Patriots are 2-5 on the year and almost certainly destined to miss the playoffs. Seeing as this franchise has made the postseason in each of the past 11 years and 16 of the last 17, that is a big deal.
Between the Patriots’ poor prospects going forward and head coach Bill Belichick being 68 years old, many are now wondering if it is time for a change.
This week, NBC Sports NFL insider Peter King suggested that it may be time for the Patriots to trade Belichick away for two first round draft picks.
“I don’t think it’s a dumb idea,” he said on WEEI’s The Greg Hill Show.
“But I also don’t think that you’re probably going to get the value that you want, that you would think you would get,” he added.
“Like, probably right now, you would think if you traded Bill Belichick you should get two 1s, you think that’s about right? Especially not really knowing how much longer Bill is going to coach, he’s getting up there in years and you don’t really know how much longer he’s going to coach, so are you going to trade two 1s for a guy who might only coach for four years? I think it’s an interesting thing. I don’t think it’s something you should dismiss out of hand.”
King did carefully acknowledge that it would be tough to get fair value in exchange for someone of Belichick’s pedigree.
Yikes. https://t.co/IxdXWJyld2
— Game 7 (@game7__) November 6, 2020
The funny thing about this entire conversation is that trading away an aging asset that is no longer producing like he used to is something Belichick himself has and continues to do. If anyone would understand the move, it would be him.
What this really boils down to is probably what sort of rebuild Patriots owner Robert Kraft is envisioning going forward.
If this is a throwaway season and he expects to be back to normal next year, then obviously your retain your Hall of Fame head coach. However, if this is something that will take years to fix – do you really need Belichick for that? Wouldn’t it make sense to start the next chapter sooner?
The one thing everyone in the Patriots organization can agree on is that this season is a lost cause. Belichick admitted this much during an interview a few days ago, when trying to pinpoint the root of his team’s struggles.
Don’t worry everybody, Bronny is fine. https://t.co/1o3FyJgFZ2
— Game 7 (@game7__) November 5, 2020
“Look, we paid Cam Newton $1 million,” Belichick admitted.
“I mean it’s obvious we didn’t have any money. It’s nobody’s fault. That’s what we did the last five years. We sold out and won three Super Bowls, played in a fourth and played in a AFC championship game. This year we had less to work with. It’s not an excuse, it’s just a fact.”
Will the Patriots be able to right the ship in 2021? Time will tell.
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Jennifer Withers Hoey is a former Business Development Manager who transitioned to writing about sports. With valuable connections all over the West Coast, she has used those contacts to break some of the most interesting stories pertaining to the Portland Trail Blazers, Oregon Ducks, LA Lakers, LA Clippers, Seattle Supersonics (RIP), and more.
