Bill Belichick is arguably the greatest coach in NFL history, but that reportedly wasn’t enough to become a first-ballot Hall of Famer.
ESPN’s Don Van Natta Jr. and Seth Wickersham reported Monday that Belichick did not receive the 40 out of 50 votes necessary to be inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame during his first year of eligibility.
Naturally, that led to plenty of reaction:
Belichick was reportedly among those confused, as Van Natta and Wickersham reported he was “puzzled” and “disappointed” and asked an associate, “six Super Bowls isn’t enough? What does a guy have to do?”
In addition to those Lombardi Trophies he won with the New England Patriots, Belichick won two more as a defensive coordinator of the New York Giants.
In terms of on-field accomplishments, there is zero argument against Belichick’s Hall of Fame candidacy.
Only Don Shula (347) has more coaching victories in NFL history than Belichick’s 333 from the regular season and playoffs. What’s more, his nine conference championships are the most for any coach in the Super Bowl era, as are his 17 division titles.
He engineered a modern-day dynasty in New England alongside Tom Brady and figured to be a complete lock for first-ballot inclusion.
However, the Spygate and Deflategate scandals that happened during his time with the Patriots were reportedly issues for some voters. According to Van Natta and Wickersham, former Buffalo Bills and Indianapolis Colts general manager Bill Polian told voters Belichick should have to “wait a year” as a type of punishment for Spygate.
The Patriots were stripped of a first-round draft pick and fined $500,000 for the scandal. Belichick was also fined $250,000 personally.
“The only explanation [for the outcome] was the cheating stuff,” a Hall of Fame voter said. “It really bothered some of the guys.”
It remains to be seen who will be included in this year’s Hall of Fame class, but the inductees will be announced during the Super Bowl activities next week.