Bill Belichick’s call to the hall will have to wait.
North Carolina Tar Heels football head coach and NFL legend Bill Belichick will not make it to the Pro Football Hall of Fame this year in a stunning development.
Bill Belichick was eligible for the Pro Football HallFame class of 2026. And he should have been a slam-dunk first-ballot pick, with six Super Bowl championships and 302 career victories.
But according to ESPN’s Seth Wickersham and Don Van Natta Jr., Belichick will not be inducted into the Hall of Fame. Sources told Van Natta and Wickersham that Belichick didn’t receive the mandatory 40 of 50 votes to get his call to Canton:
“In voting earlier this month, Belichick fell short of the 40 out of 50 votes needed for induction to the Pro Football Hall of Fame during his first year of eligibility, four sources with firsthand knowledge of the outcome told ESPN. Belichick received a call from a Hall representative last Friday afternoon with the news that he won’t be inducted into the Hall in Canton, Ohio, this summer.”
Belichick reportedly told associates that he was “puzzled” and “disappointed”, even asking how Super Bowl rings weren’t “enough.”
In 2024, the Pro Football Hall of Fame changed a rule that allowed coaches to be inducted after one year away from the game. It was a major drop from the previous mandatory winning period of five.
The 73-year-old Belichick completed the first season of a five-year deal he signed with the Tar Heels in Dec. 2024.
No Excuses For Leaving Bill Belichick Off The Ballot
If Belichick isn’t a first-ballot Hall of Famer, does that mean Aaron Rodgers will be snubbed in his first year of eligibility as well? Will Andy Reid be snubbed once or twice before finally getting his call to Canton?
Belichick is arguably the greatest coach in NFL history. 300 wins and six Super Bowl rings speak for themselves. If he’s not the greatest coach of all-time, he’s at least on the Mt. Rushmore. It’s a mockery of the Hall of Fame process.
We cannot wait to see what the voting committee has to say about this.
