Bill Belichick was reportedly left stunned by not being a first-ballot Pro Football Hall of Fame inductee, ultimately pointing to the various narratives surrounding his legendary coaching career that he thinks got in the way.
“Politics kept him out. He doesn’t believe this is a reflection on his accomplishments,” a source told ESPN in a story published on Tuesday, January 27.
Multiple other sources told the outlet that Belichick, 73, was “puzzled” and “disappointed” by not receiving the necessary 40 out of 50 votes by the Pro Football Hall of Fame selection committee, which ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported on Tuesday.
“Six Super Bowls isn’t enough?” Belichick reportedly asked an associate. The coach asked another associate, “What does a guy have to do?”
A spokesperson for the Hall of Fame declined to confirm Belichick’s being snubbed from the 2026 class.
“The Pro Football Hall of Fame does not comment on the voting of the Selection Committee and awaits the unveiling of the Class of 2026 at NFL Honors on Feb. 5 in San Francisco,” the spokesperson told ESPN.
Belichick won six Super Bowls during his tenure as head coach of the New England Patriots from 2000 to 2023.
However, Belichick’s time in New England was partially tainted, at least to some, by cheating scandals Spygate and Deflategate.
Multiple sources told ESPN that both scandals came up during talks between voters on January 13.
An anonymous voter called out former NFL executive Bill Polian, who allegedly said Belichick should be forced to “wait a year” to get into the Hall of Fame for his role in the scandals.
“The only explanation [for the outcome] was the cheating stuff,” a Hall of Fame voter told ESPN. “It really bothered some of the guys.”
Polian, 83, a former general manager of the Buffalo Bills and Indianapolis Colts, waffled on Tuesday when it was suggested that he didn’t vote for Belichick.
“That’s totally and categorically untrue. I voted for him,” Polian told Sports Illustrated’s Matt Verderame.
However, Polian told ESPN on Tuesday that he could not remember with 100 percent certainty that he voted for Belichick, instead saying he was 95 percent sure.
Polian is good friends with Patriots owner Robert Kraft, who has had a notoriously icy relationship with Belichick over the years. Kraft, 84, was also on the Hall of Fame ballot this year, though it’s not clear if he met the threshold for inclusion.
“I was shocked to learn Bill didn’t get in,” Polian told ESPN. “He deserves to be in the Hall of Fame.”’
Polian has received a barrage of criticism on social media for his inconsistent story.
Pro Football Hall of Famer Terrell Owens posted via X, “Bill Polian is a joke!!”
The Ringer’s Bill Simmons, a noted Patriots diehard, took to X and called Polian “a petty, whiny, not-honest, hypocritical, self-serving, score-settling dickhead.”
The Pro Football Hall of Fame’s Selection Committee consists of one media representative from each city with an NFL team, with two representatives each from Los Angeles and New York.
The committee also includes a 33rd member as a representative of the Pro Football Writers of America and 17 at-large delegates.
Despite being left off the list in his first year of eligibility, Belichick will still be eligible for the Pro Football Hall of Fame in years to come.
