Bill Belichick Trade Predicted By ESPN: 'No. 1 Story of NFL Offseason'
It is now an open secret that a Bill Belichick divorce from the New England Patriots could be in the offing. We continue to maintain that the legendary boss - off to a 2-8 start that has the proud Pats among the worst programs in football - would prefer to be "fired'' rather than "traded'' to a new team because in the latter scenario, his next employer will have stripped itself of assets in order to acquire the coach's services.
Nevertheless, one plugged-in media voice is once again pushing the idea that a trade is brewing ... and that the Los Angeles Chargers are a likely partner.
"They’re not going to fire Bill Belichick, they’re going to trade Bill Belichick," ESPN's Sal Paolantonio said on Get Up Tuesday. "They have the rights to Bill Belichick, so this is the big decision.''
Bill Belichick's drama might be the top story of the upcoming NFL offseason.
"Big'' indeed, as Patriots owner Robert Kraft - because his coach is under contract - certainly has the option to trade the six-time Super Bowl champion head coach.
The Paolantonio scenario? As he put it ...
The Krafts "have to sit down with Bill Belichick and say, ‘All right, we have a big opportunity. You have an opportunity to perhaps go to the Chargers. ... We’re going to make a trade for you so that you ... can get the record Don Shula has for most wins with Justin Herbert (as your quarterback) with the LA Chargers.''
The desire to be aligned with a QB with star quality fits. There are also multiple reports about how much Belichick "likes the beach,'' so we'll toss that log on this fire, too. In fact, the Chargers are widely seen as a playoff-worthy roster with plenty of talent that has underperformed under beleaguered Brandon Staley.
It has been speculated that Belichick's job appears to be safe through the end of the regular season (including this weekend, when the lowly Patriots take on the 3-8 New York Giants) and an obvious reason why is that the Krafts would rather reserve the right to trade him.
Said Sal Paolantonio: "It’s a big divorce, no question about it. It will be the No. 1 story of the offseason: What’s happening with Bill Belichick?''
