WATCH: Stephen A. Smith believes Bill Belichick has won his last Super Bowl ring
Stephen A. Smith thinks Bill Belichick will not win another Super Bowl ring. To date, Belichick has 6 Super Bowls dating back as far as 2000 and as recently as 2019. It’s an unprecedented and perrenial reign of success for a head coach in any sport, much less American football, where the NFL has more parity than a smaller league like the NBA.
Stephen A. Smith thinks Bill Belichick is the greatest coach in the sport but will not win another ring
Despite leading the team into the playoffs with a 10-7 record behind a rookie quarterback, the New England Patriots fell to the 11-6 Buffalo Bills on Wild Card weekend, 47-17. Stephen A. Smith also thought the team’s big loss to the Bills was disappointing, but it was simply, also, a matter that the Bills were the better overall team.
Bill Belichick calling Robert Kraft https://t.co/eX8yY3XcZz
Smith also stated that Belichick’s success comes with some caveats, such as his role as a team executive and the questionable draft picks the team has made over the years, specifically at the wide receiver position. Most of all, Smith felt that the biggest criticism that Belichick should receive was between the coach himself and former Patriots quarterback Tom Brady.
bill belichick looks like the angry bug from a bug’s life https://t.co/aF03mAQguF
Brady moved onto Tampa Bay and immediately won a Super Bowl with the Buccaneers. Although Tampa Bay already had a good defense and a much more talented receiving corps than New England, Smith felt that Belichick made a mistake by not riding out his head coaching tenure with the quarterback that helped him win those Super Bowl Rings. Smith went on to say that Bill Belichick’s mentoring of Tom Brady over the years should not have ended with Belichick’s pride or feeling threatened by Brady’s success. Instead, the two should have continued to win football games (and Super Bowl titles) together until one or both retired from the game.
Outside of the Patriots organization, Steven A. Smith also thinks Belichick will not be able to win another Super Bowl because his conference is not getting any easier. From Patrick Mahomes to Josh Allen to Joe Burrow, to Justin Herbert, and even Belichick’s own protege, Mike Vrabel, head coach of the Tennessee Titans, the AFC is stacked with talented teams. Smith basically says that the road to the Super Bowl for Bill Belichick and the New England Patriots will not get any easier.
Smith doesn’t think Mac Jones will measure up to the other young quarterbacks in the AFC, despite a stellar rookie season, leading the Patriots back to the playoffs. In the same clip, co-host Michael Irvin counters Smith’s argument that Bill Belichick is molding Mac Jones in the same way Tom Brady grew into his role. When Brady first started, no one in the league was mistaking him for Peyton Manning’s pedigree. The only difference is that Belichick and Brady had time on their side, 20 years ago to grow a dynasty. Bill Belichick has the same ingredients but may not have as much time to create the same success.