PATRIOTS OWNER ROBERT KRAFTS REPORTEDLY GETS VERDICT ON HALL OF FAME

The New England Patriots are 0 for 2 in Hall of Fame entries for the 2026 class.

About a week after news leaked of legendary Patriots coach Bill Belichick’s Hall of Fame snubbing, The Athletic reported Tuesday that Patriots owner Robert Kraft would not be a part of the class of 2026 either.

Kraft has owned the Patriots since 1994 and has overseen a record-setting 11 AFC championships, including their most recent this season. Kraft’s six Super Bowl rings are the most of any individual owner.

The Pats can surpass the Pittsburgh Steelers for most Super Bowl wins by a single franchise with a win over the Seattle Seahawks in Super Bowl 60 on Sunday at Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, California.

The full list of 2026 Hall of Fame inductees will be announced at NFL Honors on Thursday.

Robert Kraft Was Denied Entry Into The Pro Football Hall of Fame

The case could be made Kraft is the second-most influential owner over his tenure, behind only Jerry Jones of the Dallas Cowboys.

Aside from the unprecedented success overseeing two modern-day Patriots dynasties — and counting — Kraft built the Patriots’ new home Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Massachusetts, which opened in 2002. He has also been influential in helping the NFL’s growth by advising commissioner Roger Goodell through media-rights negotiations.

Yet, all that could not land the 84-year-old a bust at the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton, Ohio on the first ballot. So even though he was a finalist for Hall of Fame induction, like his coach-turned-nemesis Belichick and Super Bowl adversary Eli Manning, Kraft will not get a gold jacket in 2026.

Entry Into The Hall of Fame Was Made More Difficult This Year

It used to be that the NFL would induct five-to-seven honorees annually to Canton. Yet, apparently those days are over.

According to The Athletic’s Chad Graff, the induction process was made more difficult for the class of 2026.

“The Pro Football Hall of Fame changed its rules this year, which made it more difficult for candidates to be enshrined,” Graff reported. “There are 50 Hall of Fame voters, each of whom casts three votes among the five candidates; a candidate must receive at least 40 votes to gain entry.”

The 80% majority is now even more stringent than the 75% required of Baseball Hall of Fame, though it is hard to imagine 11 high-profile football watchers who could reasonably deny Kraft or Belichick entry based on their resumes.

Instead, as ESPN reported, Kraft and Belichick being denied on their first year on the ballot likely is due to the Spygate and Deflategate scandals. Longtime NFL executive Bill Polian reportedly influenced enough voters to negate Belichick’s candidacy.

“A voter who spoke on condition of anonymity said that Polian, an ardent Kraft supporter and former general manager of the Buffalo Bills and Indianapolis Colts — a chief Patriots rival during their dynasty — told some voters he believed Belichick should “wait a year” before induction as penance for Spygate,” ESPN’s Seth Wickersham and Don Van Natta Jr. reported Jan. 27.

Despite the snubbing of both Kraft and Belichick, NFL commissioner Roger Goodell feels both will end up with a bust in Canton.

“Bill Belichick’s record goes without saying,” Goodell said at his annual state of the league press conference. “Same with the Patriots’ Robert Kraft, who is also a candidate. They are spectacular. They contribute so much to this game, and I believe they’ll be Hall of Famers.”

- Pat Pickens

SHOULD BILLS HIRE BELICHICK AS THEIR NEXT COACH? | ESPN

 

BILL BELICHICK DAUGHTER-IN-LAW SHADES JORDON ... Publicists Don't Storm Off Sets!!!

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Criticism of Bill Belichick's girlfriend is now coming from his own family -- the football legend's daughter-in-law just publicly shaded Jordon Hudson for her antics during that now-infamous CBS interview.

Jennifer Schmitt, who's married to Belichick’s son Stephen, lobbed the barbs Hudson's way in an Instagram comment on Wednesday.

The post she commented on featured a video of Julian Edelman and Rob Gronkowski defending Hudson's seemingly overbearing behavior during Belichick's sit-down with Tony Dokoupil.

Belichick's two former players insisted Hudson was acting appropriately -- alleging her actions were in line with those who have previously been Belichick's publicists.

When Nikki Glaser hopped in the comment section to agree with the two ... Jennifer then whipped out her keyboard to unload her two cents on the matter -- and they weren't exactly complimentary.

"Publicists act in a professional manner," she wrote, "and don’t 'storm' off set delaying an interview."

Jennifer made no further comment. Her IG page is now private.

For Belichick's part, he's adamant Hudson crossed no lines -- saying in a statement Wednesday afternoon the 24-year-old only interjected after he repeatedly told Dokoupil and "CBS Mornings" producers he solely wanted to talk about topics related to his book, "The Art Of Winning: Lessons from My Life in Football."

CBS, meanwhile, said they made no promises to Belichick about what things they would broach during the sit-down.

- TMZ Sports 

NFL COACHES WITH THE MOST SUPER BOWL WINS

 

BILL BELICHICK REACHES 5-YEAR DEAL TO COACH NORTH CAROLINA

In one of the most stunning and compelling moves in college football history, six-time Super Bowl-winning coach Bill Belichick was named the new head coach at North Carolina on Wednesday night.

UNC officials said the sides agreed to a five-year deal pending approval by the board of trustees, which is scheduled to hold an emergency meeting Thursday.

Belichick, 72, worked in the NFL in some capacity from 1975 until his divorce from the New England Patriots after the 2023 season. This will be his first college coaching job.

Belichick's father, Steve, served as an assistant coach for the Tar Heels from 1953 to 1955.

"I grew up around college football with my dad and treasured those times," Belichick said as part of a release announcing the move. "I have always wanted to coach in college and now I look forward to building the football program in Chapel Hill."

Belichick's hiring at North Carolina, which hasn't won an ACC football title since 1980, was spearheaded by board chair John P. Preyer, who had homed in on Belichick in recent weeks. Sources told ESPN that the sides met multiple times at length, including for five hours Sunday, and those talks culminated with Belichick finalizing the deal Wednesday.

For a program awash in apathy and mediocrity, this marks a distinct and compelling shift from Mack Brown, as Belichick gives the Tar Heels an unprecedented jolt of star power for 2025 and beyond.

Tar Heels athletic director Bubba Cunningham said hiring Belichick positions the program well amid the changing landscape of college sports.

"Bill Belichick is a football legend and hiring him to lead our program represents a new approach that will ensure Carolina Football can evolve, compete and win -- today and in the future," Cunningham said in the school's news release. "At Carolina, we believe in providing championship opportunities and the best experience possible for our student-athletes, and Coach Belichick shares that commitment."

Michael Lombardi, a former NFL executive who also was an assistant under Belichick with the Patriots from 2014 to 2016, said Wednesday night he would serve as the general manager of the Tar Heels' program.

The Patriots' six Super Bowls under Belichick are an NFL record. (He won two more as an assistant coach with the New York Giants.) He enters college football with 333 NFL wins, behind only Don Shula's record of 347.

North Carolina fired Brown, 73, on Nov. 26 after a 6-6 season, ending his second stint at the school with a 44-33 record over six years. He coached the Tar Heels' regular-season finale, a 35-30 loss to NC State, then said it was a "great time for me to get out."

The hiring of the famously aloof Belichick, who joked Monday on "The Pat McAfee Show" about his news conference aura, represents a significant shift from Brown's syrupy Southern charm.

Belichick has spent his year away from the sideline doing multiple media jobs while making it clear he wanted to return to coaching. After exploring multiple NFL positions last year following his departure from New England, it was expected Belichick would explore the NFL market again.

But sources told ESPN that a return to coaching in general had been paramount for Belichick. He spent a lot of time around his former assistant, Washington Huskies coach Jedd Fisch, and talking to friends and former assistant coaches around college football. Belichick's son Stephen is the Huskies' defensive coordinator and is expected to be involved with the North Carolina staff in some way.

At 72 years old, Bill Belichick is now the oldest head coach in the FBS. The previous oldest entering this season was Mack Brown (73), whom Belichick is succeeding at North Carolina:

Through the NFL draft every year, Belichick has built up a reserve of college coach confidants, and he has popped up at places such as Washington, Rutgers and LSU this year for college games.

Belichick also spent recent days familiarizing himself with the transfer portal and NIL, and he spent a lot of time on how the organizational chart of a college system would work.

He made it clear in his interview with McAfee on Monday that he would create an incubator for NFL talent if he were a college coach.

"If I was in a college program, the college program would be a pipeline to the NFL for the players that had the ability to play in the NFL," Belichick said. "It would be a professional program: training, nutrition, scheme, coaching and techniques that would transfer to the NFL."

He concluded a lengthy portrait of what the program would look like by saying: "It would be an NFL program, but not at the NFL level."

If talks between Belichick and North Carolina had broken down, Cleveland Browns passing game specialist and tight ends coach Tommy Rees was considered the favorite to land the Tar Heels job, league sources told ESPN. Rees interviewed for the job twice, and he had Nick Saban as an advocate.

Other names that had emerged in the search included veteran NFL coach Steve Wilks, Tulane coach Jon Sumrall, Georgia defensive coordinator Glenn Schumann, Army coach Jeff Monken and Pittsburgh Steelers offensive coordinator Arthur Smith.

Smith indicated he would stay with the Steelers, and Tulane reached an agreement in principle with Sumrall on a contract extension.

- Pete Thamel, Adam Schefter, Chris Low

TOM BRADY INDUCTED INTO PATRIOTS HALL OF FAME, NO. 12 RETIRED

 

"It wasn’t me, it wasn’t you, it was us,” Tom Brady said of his former coach in New England, Bill Belichick. "Let me make this crystal clear -- there is no coach in the world I would rather play for than Bill Belichick." New England Patriots

FOXBOROUGH, Mass. -- In a sold-out ceremony in front of more than 60,000 fans at Gillette Stadium, Tom Brady was inducted into the New England Patriots Hall of Fame Wednesday night, with owner Robert Kraft announcing that his jersey No. 12 will never be worn again in New England.

In addition, Kraft said a statue of Brady measuring 12 feet tall will be unveiled during the 2024 season, something the franchise has never done before.

"Our goal was to create a once-in-a-lifetime ceremony for a one-in-a-kind player. I hope we accomplished that goal with a few firsts," Kraft said.

Brady capped off the three-hour program with a rousing speech that was at times fiery, emotional, inspirational and humorous. He called it a "monumental moment" in his life, expressed his thanks to Kraft, and concluded by saying: "I am eternally grateful. I am Tom Brady. And I am a Patriot."

Brady's 20 years with the franchise from 2000-19 produced six Super Bowl championships and 17 AFC East titles before he finished his career playing three seasons for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, winning another Super Bowl.

More than 100 of his teammates and former coaches attended the Hall of Fame ceremony, including Bill Belichick, which marked the first time Belichick was back at Gillette Stadium since he and the Patriots parted ways in January after 24 seasons.

Brady noted the presence of Belichick, who was one of the night's featured speakers earlier in the night and received a thunderous ovation.

"Thank you for your tireless commitment to develop and push me to be my very best. It wasn't me, it wasn't you, it was us," Brady said. "Let me make this crystal clear - there is no coach in the world I would rather play for than Bill Belichick."

Belichick had concluded his remarks with a similar message for Brady.

"Thank you for all that you've done for us. Thank you for all you've done for me. And thank you for the example and model that you've been for all of us, on a daily basis, for 20 years," Belichick said. "You're unbelievable."

The night included a few surprises for Brady, including the presence of his longtime rival Peyton Manning, who insisted that he deliver his remarks in person after noting that Brady was there for him at his Pro Football Hall of Fame induction in 2021.

Singer Kenny Chesney was on hand to perform a live version of his song "The Boys of Fall" and rapper Jay-Z sang "Public Service Announcement" -- the song that played when Brady took the field during the second half of his Patriots career.

Brady's parents, sisters and extended family were all in attendance, and Brady often showed his emotions when mentioning them throughout the night.

"It is so difficult to put into words what this night means to me and our entire family," he said.

- Mike Reiss, ESPN Staff Writer

TOM BRADY'S NETFLIX ROAST FEATURES LOTS OF HUMOR, REUNION BETWEEN ROBERT KRAFT AND BILL BELICHICK

AP Photo 

 INGLEWOOD, Calif. (AP) — Three months before Tom Brady gets roasted by critics as Fox Sports' top NFL analyst, he took his share of barbs from comedians, former teammates and his longtime coach Sunday night during a made-for-streaming comedy live event on Netflix.

And it is safe to say after the one liners and jokes Brady heard during three hours of “The Greatest Roast of All Time” at The Forum, he will do just fine.

“It’s like a football game. You run with a game plan, and then you get to see kind of how the strategy goes, and then you adjust on the fly,” Brady said before the event. “This is what a locker room has been like for me for all these years. So it’s not like I’m used to people not making fun of me.”

Comedian Nikki Glaser, whose monologue was among the funniest of the night, termed the roast as “the comedians' Super Bowl” and how the competition level was ramped up because everyone wanted to one-up each other.

Brady sustained more blitzes and pressure than he did during an average NFL game as an impressive lineup of comedians, former teammates and opponents took the stage . Host Kevin Hart said before the event that no topic was off limits, and Hart went on the offensive early with jokes about Brady's ex-wife, Gisele Bündchen.

“Gisele gave you an ultimatum. She said you retire or we're done. When you got a chance to go 8-9 and all it will cost you is your wife and your kids, you've got to do what you've got to do,” Hart said, referring to Brady coming out of a brief retirement in 2022 for one more season.

The only time Brady objected to a joke was when Jeff Ross made a reference to Patriots owner Robert Kraft and massages. In 2019, Kraft originally received a misdemeanor charge that he paid for sex at a Florida massage parlor. Prosecutors later dropped the charge after courts blocked the use of video from cameras installed by police inside the massage parlors.

Brady walked up to Ross and said in his ear “don't say that (stuff) again”, but it was clearly caught on the microphone and heard by those watching the roast at home. It was not heard by those in attendance.

Later, Kraft and former Patriots coach Bill Belichick did a shot together on stage after some coaxing from Hart.

Belichick was fired in January after 24 seasons with the Patriots, and a lot has been written about friction between the six-time winning Super Bowl coach and owner over the past couple years.

After joking about this being like a reunion and “unlike many family reunions there are some people I am desperately trying to avoid”, Kraft praised Belichick for what the two accomplished.

“I want to say this is the greatest coach in the history of the game that did what no one else has done. And having Tom Brady and him was the greatest honor the good Lord gave me,” Kraft said.

It wasn't the first shot (of alcohol) that Belichick took. Rob Gronkowski got Belichick and Brady to do a shot together after his monologue. Gronkowski celebrated by spiking his shot glass.

Belichick appeared at the beginning of the roast during a pre-taped segment when he told Brady that he was “starting the roast” instead of Drew Bledsoe. Brady replaced Bledsoe in 2001 when Bledsoe was injured in a Week 2 game against the Jets and led the Patriots to their first Super Bowl title that season.

“For all of you out there who think about who's responsible for the Patriots success during the time Tom and I was together — was it Tom or me — in reality the truth of the matter was it was both of us because of me,” Belichick said.

Brady did have some fun at Belichick's expense though near the end of the show.

“I've been out of the game for a minute, so I’m curious, how many Super Bowl rings have you won since I left?,” Brady said. “Maybe it’s not just the guy on the sideline. When I go to the Indy 500, I don’t ask the winning driver, `Hey, you gassed up your car?;”

Hart said before the show that he thought Brady was in a great mindset going into the event. Brady did come in well prepared, going over his monologue with a group of people, including those at Fox Sports.

“You have to be able to laugh at yourself and I love that he is doing in this forum," Hart said. "I love that he is embracing the things that some people think he runs away from. It is a celebration of greatness and we are doing it in a fun way.”

Bledsoe also said that Brady has had a sense of humor, but that this was a different stage.

“I thought he was very brave. There’s plenty of material to make fun of him on," Bledsoe said. "The truth is when you’re a professional athlete, roasting each other is kind of what we do every day in the locker room. And so, you better have thick skin going in. Now, people get to laugh along with it.”

- JOE REEDY

EAGLES TO PLAY IN NFL'S GAME IN BRAZIL TO KICK OFF '24

 LAS VEGAS -- The Philadelphia Eagles will play host to the NFL's first regular-season game in Brazil, NFL commissioner Roger Goodell announced Monday in his state of the NFL media conference at Allegiant Stadium.

The Eagles, who last played an international game in 2018, will face a to-be-announced opponent in São Paolo on Friday, Sept. 6, the day after the NFL season kicks off on Thursday night. This will be the NFL's first Friday game on opening weekend in more than 50 years.

"We are just incredibly enthusiastic about our growth on a global basis," Goodell said. "We are convinced we can be a global sport in the near future. Our ownership has committed to allow more games to be played on an annual basis, on a global basis. We are excited about the fans' reaction and our media partners. I think this is a great opportunity for the league and we are committed to making it a global sport."

The Eagles' home opponents for the 2024 season are the Dallas Cowboys, New York Giants, Washington Commanders, Cleveland Browns, Atlanta Falcons, Carolina Panthers, Jacksonville Jaguars, Green Bay Packers and Pittsburgh Steelers.

"Brazil is new for us this year," Goodell added. "We think this is giving us the ability to access more fans. Not just here in the States, but on a global basis. And I think it's going to be a huge hit. We're excited."

Per NFL.com, the league counts 38 million fans in Brazil with an "increased" interest in recent years when it comes to the playoffs and the Super Bowl. The league's website also noted 49,000-seat Corinthians Arena, which played host to World Cup matches in 2014 as well as Olympic soccer matches in 2016, as the likely site of the game.

The NFL already plays international games in England and Germany and could be targeting Spain in 2025 as owners passed a resolution in the fall compelling each team to play an international game once every four years.

BILL BELICHICK THANKS PATRIOTS FANS, REMEMBERS 'AMAZING' MOMENTS

USA TODAY Sports 

 Former Patriots coach Bill Belichick took out a full-page ad in Sunday's edition of The Boston Globe, thanking New England fans for their support over his long tenure with the team.

"Nowhere in America are pro sports fans as passionate as in New England and for 24 years, I was blessed to feel your passion and power. The Patriots are the only NFL team representing SIX states but in reality, Patriots Nation knows no borders," he started his letter, which ran on page A3 of Sunday's paper.

Belichick, 71, and the Patriots parted ways on Jan. 11 after a run that included six Super Bowl titles and three more AFC championships. He compiled a 266-121 record in the regular season and 30-12 in the postseason over 24 years in New England.

BILL BELICHICK LEAVING PATRIOTS AFTER 24 SEASONS, SOURCES SAY

Bill Belichick has 333 wins all time (regular season and playoffs), 14 behind Hall of Famer Don Shula. AP Photo/Michael Dwyer

Bill Belichick and the New England Patriots are expected to part ways Thursday after a remarkable 24 seasons together, ending an unmatched run in NFL history that included six Super Bowl titles, league sources told ESPN.

Belichick and Patriots owner Robert Kraft spent a good part of this week periodically meeting and discussing how each side wanted to proceed. From sources familiar with those conversations, there was said to be no conflict, no disagreement, and in the end, productive talks resulted in a mutual decision that left both sides comfortable and at ease.

Both Belichick and Kraft, as one outside party noted, "took the high road," which was fitting for an owner-coach tandem that will go down as one of the greatest and most decorated in NFL history.

Belichick, who had one year remaining on his contract, will be allowed to leave the team without the Patriots seeking compensation. He will want to continue coaching and is expected to draw interest from at least some of the other seven NFL teams that have head-coaching vacancies, quite possibly the Atlanta Falcons, league sources said.

The Patriots now will embark on their first head-coaching search in a quarter century. Patriots linebackers coach Jerod Mayo, whom the team signed to a contract extension in the offseason and Kraft has identified as a rising head-coaching candidate, projects to be a, if not the, leading candidate for the job, sources said. Mayo played for the Patriots from 2008 to 2014 and has been an assistant under Belichick since 2019.

LAST RIDE? BILL BELICHICK STILL GIVING 'MY BEST' EVERY DAY' TO PATRIOTS

USA TODAY Sports 

Considering his track record for discipline and consistency, it would be a surprise if Patriots coach Bill Belichick prematurely rode off into the sunset as he prepares for what is rumored to be his final game in New England.

Sparked by reports of owner Robert Kraft's decision on Belichick's future with the team, speculation mounted in November that New England was ready for a change at the position.

With six Super Bowl titles in 24 seasons with the Patriots, Belichick is regarded as one of the greatest coaches of all-time. But at 4-12, the Patriots are headed for their third losing season in four years since Tom Brady left in free agency.

Belichick, 71, rarely engages in discussions around hypothetical or speculative topics in his media sessions, and kept that usual nose-to-the-grindstone portrait intact on Tuesday in an interview aired on WEEI in Boston.

AARON RODGERS TALKS WIN OVER PATRIOTS & RELATIONSHIP WITH BELICHICK

 

BILL BELICHICK ON PREPARING FOR THE TITANS: IT'S A "GOOD OPPORTUNITY FOR US THIS WEEK"

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