In the year 2023 it has become commonplace to overreact and completely turn every molehill we come across into Mount Everest. "I got a big tip today, so I'm going to make $200,000 this year." "I have a headache, so I must have a brain tumor from pollution." In the northeastern part of the country, overreaction sounds like this: "The Patriots stink. They need to fire Bill Belichick."
Firing the greatest head coach since the invention of football makes no sense and may be one of history's most poorly thought-out sentiments. It's akin to rolling your ankle on a jog, then vowing never to exercise again.
There are two main reasons that fans need to calm down and retract all those crazy statements on social media regarding the Patriots head coach.
1. Bill Belichick is still the best coach in the NFL
Watching the Patriots this season I see a number of problem areas, but none of them revolve around time management, bad play-calling, wrong personnel groups, or not being prepared to play. In terms of what a coach does on the sidelines and in meeting rooms, there's nobody better in the league than Bill Belichick. The best plans will fail to yield results though if you don't have the players to pull it off.
The Patriots quarterback can't tell the difference between home and away jerseys, their offensive line can't block anyone, and they don't have a reliable pass catcher that you can go to when you really need to complete a pass.
I agree with most that this is Belichick's fault, due to poor free agent signings, and awful drafts, but it's not coach Belichick's fault. It's GM Belichick's fault. I have no issue asking him to step aside and have the Patriots hire a GM, but he still needs to be the guy coaching the players.
2. The Patriots have no succession plan
If the Patriots decide to move on from the best coach ever, who do they replace him with? Some have suggested Jerrod Mayo, who has never been a coordinator and is viewed as a future replacement because he is a clone of Belichick. So, you replace a guy with a less experienced version of himself? How does that make any sense at all?
Should the Patriots choose to go outside the organization and get away from the Belichick way, will a college coach like Lane Kiffin make sense? Didn't work out too well for the Raiders.
Speaking of the Raiders, I'm sure some folks would want to bring Josh McDaniels back since the offense flourished under him. I must again refer to his stints as a head coach for two different teams and wonder how he would be any better on a third.
There are some concerns that need to be addressed immediately and at the end of the season, but the head coach is not one of those things. There isn't another person alive I would rather have patrolling the Patriots sidelines, and I know for a fact that if the team is going to have success again, it will be because of him. Dial back the hate and get in touch with reality.
