NFL Coach Rankings: Patriots' Bill Belichick Falls Out of Top Spot?
Bill Belichick's seat may not be hot, but as he enters his 24th season as the coach of the New England Patriots, it may not be as ice cold as it's been for the bulk of his tenure.
The future Hall of Famer was still ranked highly on our SI/FanNation countdown of the top coaches entering the 2023 season, but dropped to No. 2 after a string of middling years:
"Belichick has fallen out of the top spot, and if there isn't a major step in the right direction in New England in 2023, he'll likely experience an even more significant drop next year. Belichick is one of the greatest head coaches in the history of professional sports, but it's impossible to ignore the fact that the Patriots are 25-25 in three seasons since Tom Brady departed in free agency. Belichick's disastrous staffing decisions and the consistent inability to develop wide receivers also reflect poorly on him."
Belichick was leapfrogged by another future Hall of Famer in Andy Reid, who has now guided the Kansas City Chiefs to three Super Bowl appearances and two titles. Certainly, having quarterback Patrick Mahomes at his disposal works in favor of Reid, but he's done an excellent job of building a coaching pipeline for when his assistants -- Matt Nagy, Doug Pederson, Mike Kafka and now Eric Bieniemy -- are poached by other organizations. Bill O'Brien is back as the offensive coordinator in New England, but not having a better succession plan for Josh McDaniels' departure than Matt Patricia and Joe Judge is impossible to defend.
2023 will be the fourth year since Brady -- at least in part because Belichick wanted to turn the page -- departed New England. It's hard to make the case right now that Belichick, also the organization's top executive, wouldn't have been better served finding a way to keep Brady for the remainder of his career.
And if the Patriots don't emerge from 2023 with a clear long-term answer at quarterback in the form of Mac Jones, Belichick could very well drop below Sean Payton of the Denver Broncos, Kyle Shanahan of the San Francisco 49ers and Mike Tomlin of the Pittsburgh Steelers, among others, on next year's countdown.
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