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Bill Belichick and New England Patriots 'part ways' after 24 years in stunning NFL split

Bill Belichick's 24-year tenure in charge of the New England Patriots has come to an end, with the 71 year old and the franchise set to confirm their split on Thursday

[Bill Belichick lifted the Lombardi Trophy six times with the New England Patriots.]

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Bill Belichick lifted the Lombardi Trophy six times with the New England Patriots.(Image: Christian Petersen/Getty Images)

The Bill Belichick era for the New England Patriots is over. After 24 years, Belichick's time in charge of the Patriots has come to an end, putting an end to rampant speculation over his future.

ESPN's Adam Schefter reports that Belichick and the Patriots will announce their split later today, with a press conference planned for 5pm. It marks the end of an era, as the 71-year-old has been a fixture at Gillette Stadium for nearly a quarter of a century.

Patriots legends Jerod Mayo and Mike Vrabel are among the early favourites to replace Belichick, who also acted as the Pats' de facto general manager during his stay. It's expected that Belichick will continue coaching and will receive offers to lead other NFL teams next season, with six other vacancies across the league.

Belichick led the team to nine Super Bowl appearances and six titles, the most recent in 2019. He formed a legendary partnership with quarterback Tom Brady, bringing unprecedented success.

However, their relationship became strained and since Brady left for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in 2020, Belichick and the Patriots haven't been able to recreate their previous success.

This season was the nadir of Belichick's tenure, ending last in the AFC East with a 4-13 record. The campaign ended fittingly, with a rare loss to old rivals the New York Jets in the snow on Sunday, wrapping up a deeply disappointing season.

Belichick spoke at his end-of-season press conference on Monday, stating he was still under contract with the Pats and committed to "helping the team in whatever way" he could.

"It was a very disappointing season all the way around [for] players, coaches, staff, organisation," Belichick admitted.

[Patrick Mahomes and Kadarius Toney helped the Kansas City Chiefs win Super Bowl LVII]

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Patrick Mahomes and Kadarius Toney helped the Kansas City Chiefs win Super Bowl LVII(Image: Maddie Meyer/Getty Images)

"You know, everybody's not anywhere close to what our standards and expectations are. Obviously, things need to be fixed." he added. He expressed pride in how the players competed, but not in the results.

"I'm under contract, I'm going to do what I always do, which is every day I come in, work as hard as I can to help the team in whatever way I can. So that is what I'm going to continue to do. Today was the wrap-up day with the players, we'll have a meeting with them and go from there." he said.

The news of Belichick's departure comes after a remarkable week in football, with Nick Saban and Pete Carroll's long and successful tenures with the Alabama Crimson Tide and Seattle Seahawks respectively ending. But it's Belichick's exit that will dominate the headlines. He took over a franchise that had never won a Super Bowl in 2000 and within five years, he had three championship rings.

The Patriots made it to the Super Bowl in 2007 and 2011, but were beaten by the New York Giants both times. However, they tasted glory again in 2015 when they beat the Seahawks in Super Bowl 49.

In 2017, the Patriots pulled off an amazing comeback from 28-3 down to beat the Atlanta Falcons for the Lombardi Trophy. They lost to the Philadelphia Eagles in the big game 2018, but won their sixth Super Bowl against the Los Angeles Rams a year later.

* An AI tool was used to add an extra layer to the editing process for this story. You can report any errors to webhomepage@mirror.co.uk

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