NFL Analyst Gives Insight Into How Long Bill Belichick Will Coach
At some point, Bill Belichick will stop coaching the New England Patriots.
When exactly that will happen, though, remains a mystery to all.
But a former NFL quarterback turned analyst doesn’t believe Belichick has many seasons left patrolling the Patriots sideline.
“We’re coming down the home stretch,” NBC Sports’ Chris Simms said on his “Unbuttoned” podcast Monday. “Too many people I know connected with the situation, life and football, where it’s one, two more years. I don’t think he’s going to hang around just to beat Don Shula’s record. I think he’d like to beat it, but if it doesn’t happen, OK, he’s going to hold up his six Super Bowl rings and go, ‘Well, I beat you in this department.’
“But yeah, I think we’re definitely down to the last year or two of the Bill Belichick era in New England.”
What keeps a 71-year-old Belichick motivated at this late stage in his career is anybody’s guess. He has already cemented his legacy, winning more Super Bowl titles than any other coach in NFL history.
The 2023 campaign will be his 49th season as a coach in the NFL and his 29th as a head coach, with 24 of those seasons coming with the Patriots. Perhaps Simms is on to something and a nice, round No. 50 is what Belichick is looking for before walking away after next season.
There’s also Belichick’s pursuit of becoming the all-time winningest coach the NFL has ever seen. He enters this season with 329 careers wins, including playoffs, which is good for second-most ever only trailing the 347 victories accumulated by legendary Miami Dolphins coach Don Shula.
It’s conceivable that Belichick could break that record next season if all goes well for the Patriots.
But Belichick just might have plans to ride off into the sunset regardless if he has the record in hand.