The NFL’s coaching carousel is done spinning, with two of the seemingly most sought-after candidates — Bill Belichick and Mike Vrabel — still on the their plastic horses. When the New England Patriots and Tennessee Titans announced they were moving on from their respective coaches, I would’ve bet my car that those two would be swooped up in record time.
Just today the last team without a head coach, the Washington Commanders, hired Dallas DC Dan Quinn.
So why hasn’t the second most winningest coach in NFL history, or his most successful protege, been hired? Clearly, both know how to win. I don’t need to recite Belichick’s particulars because you know about them. Vrabel was 54-45 in six seasons at Tennessee, went to the playoffs three straight years with Ryan Tannehill under center, and finished below .500 in only his final two years on the job while dealing with an injured QB and a declining Derrick Henry.
I wouldn’t blame front offices around the league for turning their noses at the Josh McDaniels and Matt Patricias of the world, and no one is going to hire Brian Flores while he’s still suing the league, but maybe the litany of flameouts has something to do with it. Fan bases would riot if you announced Romeo Crennel, Bill O’Brien, Joe Judge, Eric Mangini or Jim Schwartz to run your team. Ditto for the Belichick kin, Steve and Brian, who were offered a spot on Jerod Mayo’s staff, and should probably take it considering their pops doesn’t have employment for them.
The other factor is Belichick has been a tyrant for years, and no general manager wants to haggle with a guy who has a vastly different draft board from the rest of the NFL. There’s also a heavy stench of micromanaging because that’s the only fathomable reason the fruit from the Belichick coaching tree is rotten more often than not.
Did all of them forget how to coach or is it a situation where Belichick can’t teach how he coaches? There are plenty of possibilities, and a report said Belichick would rather sit out a year than take the wrong job, but it’s unclear if he was offered one, or if he was asking for too much power. Sean Payton didn’t even get general manager powers in Denver, and he had gobs of clout.
The only person who could consistently meet Belichick’s standards was Tom Brady, and when people started to question who was more responsible for New England’s success, the animosity between QB and coach was enough to force Brady to Tampa Bay. He won a Super Bowl while Belichick tried to resurrect Cam Newton and turn Mac Jones into someone he’s not.
The Hoodie has always demanded blind faith from his followers, and unsurprisingly, that’s how a lot of his assistants-turned-head coaches operated as well. McDaniels, Mangini and, to a degree, Flores, all clashed with management, media or players. Remember Flores trying to trade Tua Tagovailoa for Deshaun Watson for, like, two years? Denver Broncos fans still loathe McDaniels, and don’t forget about Man-genius’ exit from the Jets. According to The Athletic, festering slights and poor communication led to Vrabel’s exit in Nashville, which, of course, they did.
One could question whether society’s pivot from a less-abrasive style of management in recent years is a factor. Call it soft, or woke, but perhaps employees desire to be treated with respect regardless of how smart their boss is, or the profitability of the company. Or, maybe, the rest of the league is bitter about having their asses handed to them by ol’ Billy Boy for a couple decades, and conspired to shadow ban everything Belichick.
I don’t want to say collusion or compare this to the states currently trying to block Donald Trump’s reelection campaign, but the thought of Belichick opening an account on X so he can tell the world that NFL franchises are conspiring to keep him from the all-time wins record did cross my mind. Honestly, given the Hoodie’s preference in political parties, it’s not 100 percent out of the realm of possibilities.
All I know is it’s odd that no organization was desperate, or smart enough, to give either Belichick or Vrabel the reins. I mean, I can understand the pettiness, but, damn, people must really not like the Hoodie.
