HOF Voter Reveals Reason Behind Not Voting for Bill Belichick

The Pro Football Hall of Fame voters shocked the NFL world on January 27 when ESPN reported that voters had not sent former New England Patriots head coach and eight-time Super Bowl champion- two of which were as the defensive coordinator of the New York Giants - Bill Belichick to Canton in his first year of eligibility.

Reports subsequently emerged that much of the reasoning behind Belichick's initial HoF snub came as a revenge for "Spygate", with the charge allegedly being lead by former Indianapolis Colts and Buffalo Bills general manager, Bill Polian - who is a Hall of Famer himself.

However, according to one voter who publicly admitted to not voting for Belichick, this is not the only plausible reason to keep Belichick out of Canton - at least for now.

Dec 21, 2019; Foxborough, Massachusetts, USA; New England Patriots head coach Bill Belichick watches from the sideline as they take on the Buffalo Bills in the second quarter at Gillette Stadium. Mandatory Credit: David Butler II-Imagn Images | David Butler II-Imagn Images

Chiefs Writer Breaks Down Rationale For Voting Against Belichick

The Kansas City Star's Vahe Gregorian wrote in a column on January 28 - the day after the saga unfolded - his reasoning behind voting for other coaching/contributor/senior candidates.

His argument lies not that Belichick or Patriots owner, Robert Kraft - who is up for the Hall as a "contributor" - are unworthy of landing in the Hall of Fame, but that it made more sense to vote for the other three older, senior candidates.

"As the presentations and discussions proceeded, I found myself wanting to vote for all five — including Steelers great Greenwood, a four-time Super Bowl champ who was All-Decade in the 1970s, and Bengals quarterback Anderson, the 1981 MVP who led the league in passer rating four times," Gregorian wrote.

With the senior players being deserving, alongside them being part of the vast backlog of other older players who have been overlooked for ascension to Canton for many years, Gregorian believed the correct move was to at least try to start to clear the roadblock a little more - sending the three elder players to the HoF at the expense of Kraft and Belichick.

"Despite 10 senior players (along with three contributors and two coaches) being inducted in 2020 as part of the NFL 100 celebration, the senior backlog remains so overwhelming — including approximately 60 one-time all-decade players — that any chance to climb out is fleeting and fraught," Gregorian continued.

And, crucially, as Gregorian points out - unlike modern-era finalists, who are often renominated multiple times before getting in, older veterans are often excluded from the ensuing year's final ballot if they do not make it in - making it essentially a one-shot try to reach the Hall of Fame for many candidates.

Whilst the reasoning does make sense for Gregorian - and perhaps alludes more to the necessity to change the current Hall of Fame voting and categorization system - there are ultimately very few persuasive arguments that can be made to fully justify keeping Bill Belichick out of the Hall on his first year of eligibility.

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