If Bill Belichick Leaves Patriots, Where’s His Next Coaching Stop?

It’s tough to imagine Bill Belichick at the helm in Foxboro much longer.

All good things come to an end in professional sports. Just ask Phil Jackson, Joe Torre and Pat Riley, legendary coaches with multiple championships who fell out of flavor with management and went their separate ways.

So even with six Super Bowl trophies under Belichick’s belt, it’s not crazy to imagine a world where he isn’t coaching the New England Patriots next year.

The offense is non-existent, third-year quarterback Mac Jones is completely broken and New England’s inability to draft and develop players is palpable. And without Tom Brady, the Patriots will miss the NFL playoffs for the third time in four seasons.

How much more can you take?

Here are betting odds on where Belichick coaches next year if he leaves:

Washington Commanders +275
Carolina Panthers +350
Los Angeles Chargers +475
Las Vegas Raiders +750
Chicago Bears +1000
Tampa Bay Buccaneers +1000
New Orleans Saints +1200
Seattle Seahawks +1800
Atlanta Falcons +2500
Cleveland Browns +3000
(Odds created for NESN)

Rumors about Belichick coaching the Commanders are already swirling and there’s belief in new Washington ownership parting ways with Ron Rivera and bringing in a coach with championship pedigree.

The Panthers and Raiders currently have head coaching vacancies and it’s believed the Chargers will send Brandon Staley packing if he can’t lead Los Angeles back to the playoffs with star quarterback Justin Herbert.

Chicago, Tampa Bay, New Orleans, Seattle, Atlanta and Cleveland aren’t necessarily in the hunt for a new head man right now, but it wouldn’t be surprising if any of those organizations moved on from their coach.

Especially if Belichick is available.

“Somebody will jump through hoops to bring in Belichick,” one professional bettor told NESN. “He should relocate to a contending team and try to take it to the next level. Besides, the Patriots don’t need his fingerprints on a rebuild.

“Do you really want Bill developing another rookie quarterback?”

Time will tell whether Belichick returns for his 25th season with the Patriots, but for the first time ever, it won’t be a surprise if he exits stage left and doesn’t look back.

Tick tick tick.