Following the New England Patriots’ 0-2 start to the 2023 season, Boston sports radio host Tony Massarotti went viral for his rant calling for Bill Belichick to be fired.
But while the idea of a team firing a head coach who won six Super Bowls with the franchise may have seemed sacrilegious at the time, with the Patriots now 1-4 — and having been outscored 72-3 the last two weeks — Belichick being on the hot seat now seems a little less crazy.
So much so that while discussing the betting odds for the first NFL coach to be fired this season, diehard Boston sports fan Bill Simmons suggested that Belichick’s name should be high on the list.
“If you’re going first coach fired, is Belichick one of the three coaches now?” Simmons asked “Cousin” Sal Iacono on Monday’s episode of The Bill Simmons Podcast. “I can’t believe I’m saying this, I feel like I’m going to get struck by lightning.”
“You and I always go over this at the beginning of the year and he was always like 100-1 and I’d say, ‘you know, he could get arrested for something,'” Iacono joked. “But now it’s just on his merits.”
Simmons followed up that he thought the short list of head coaches who could be fired this season would include the Chicago Bears’ Matt Eberflus, the Los Angeles Chargers’ Brandon Staley and Belichick. For what it’s worth, Bookies.com‘s latest odds on the first coach fired this season — which were released last week — didn’t include Belichick, with Eberflus (+115) leading Staley (+350) and the Las Vegas Raiders’ Josh McDaniels (+750).
But in the NFL, a lot can change in a week and while the Patriots parting ways with its legendary coach would be jarring, it also doesn’t seem far fetched. Especially considering Belichick’s role in constructing the team’s lackluster roster, it’s tough to imagine that he has a long term future in New England — even if he does survive the rest of the season.
Simmons noted that could lead to the fascinating scenario of the 71-year-old Belichick joining another franchise to finish his quest of becoming the NFL’s all-time winningest head coach. With 299 career victories, Belichick currently trails only Don Shula (328) and George Halas (318).
Considering the Patriots’ current trajectory, a change of scenery for Belichick might even be necessary if he’s going to catch Shula. Either way, it would have been crazy to think a month ago that Simmons could have made such a suggestion without it seeming like a total hot take.
“I can’t believe Belichick’s even in that conversation,” Simmons said.