Credit: Bella Schreiber

WSPN’s Bella Schreiber and Jenny Shine discuss opinions on Bill Belichick’s future in the National Football League (NFL).

After 24 seasons, head coach Bill Belichick has said goodbye to the New England Patriots. In Belichick’s time with the Patriots, he won six super bowls and is currently only 15 wins away from having the most wins of any National Football League (NFL) coach ever. It is clear that Belichick has had great success, but everyone’s prime comes to an end at some point. With the Patriots’s last game of the 2023-2024 football season, Belichick became the coach with the most losses. He is out of his prime, and nobody at the age of 71 is at their best.

The game of football and coaching styles have changed, and it is difficult to teach an old dog new tricks. Belichick had even said that he didn’t hope to play into his 70s, so why do the chances of him retiring seem so small?

Realistically, any sane person would want to hold on to the highest-winning record in the NFL, so we can’t fully blame Belichick for his decision to keep coaching. However, it will likely take multiple seasons for Belichick to get 15 wins unless he has an amazing season with a new team. That poses a question, though. How long is Belichick willing to coach to achieve his 15 wins? Past the age of 75, retirement makes a lot of sense, considering Belichick has already made enough money to retire. There are more important things than just holding a record.

Players and fans want new coaches. It seems like everyone already knows Belichick’s coaching style and it’s getting old. Watching him and former Patriots quarterback Tom Brady conquer the field was nice, but it’s time to move on. Only five coaches in the history of the NFL have ever coached a game past the age of 70, and there is a valid reason for that.

It’s hard for a coach like Belichick–someone who hasn’t physically played the game in decades–to relate to the players now. A young coach has more recent experience and is able to act more like a ‘big brother’ rather than a stern father. Overall, a younger coach can prove to be more understanding of how the football players of today play.

Young coaches like San Francisco 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan (44), Pittsburgh Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin (51), Los Angeles Rams head coach Sean McVay (37), Miami Dolphins head coach Mike McDaniel (40) and many more have set the tone for other teams in the league. These coaches have set the precedent that if you want to be a game-winning coach, you need to be young, bold and ready to think outside the box.

Old coaches tend to be set in their ways and unwilling to adjust to the new ways of the NFL. On the other hand, new coaches like McDaniel tend to be more innovative, creative with plays and willing to learn from other coaches or players. Getting fresh ideas into the system just works out for everyone.

Belichick had his time to shine, but it’s time for him to pack up and go home. Realistically, at least one team is going to offer him a coaching position, but nobody truly needs him anymore. Yes, he almost has the most wins in the NFL, but that was mostly under Brady, and the tables are now flipped – he also has the most losses.

He needs to cut his losses here and move on with life. He can still watch and enjoy football, but he has more than enough money to retire, and it would be good to clear a space for a new, young coach who has the potential to stomp all over that win record.

If he’s only still coaching to break a record, Belichick should no longer be a coach. The goal of coaching is to help players be the best they can be, not to win as many coaching awards as possible. As athletes, we know that the best type of coach is someone who is genuinely interested in the sport, wants to learn new things and wants to try new strategies. The best coach doesn’t necessarily have to have the best or worse record. They just need to be someone who is calm in moments of stress, easy to talk and relate to, interested in the game and knowledgeable about what it takes to win.