No matter how many people say he’s on the hot seat, Bill Belichick’s chair appears to be as cold as ice after he agreed to a “lucrative” multi-year contract extension in the offseason, according to a report from NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport on Sunday morning.
New England is 1-5 on the season, and off to their worst six-game start in the Belichick era so the news came as a bit of a shock as the team was coming off a terrible year in 2022.
NBC Sports insider Tom E. Curran has an interesting theory on his new contract.
“My understanding is lucrative, well, of course it’s lucrative. It’s Bill Belichick, he makes a lot of dough. Multi-year, that simply could mean 2023 and 2024 for instance,” Curran said on NBC Sports Boston’s pregame coverage. “So, that extension would satisfy in some ways, perhaps a timeline for Jerod Mayo.”
It should be noted that the Carolina Panthers requested to interview Patriots linebackers coach Jerod Mayo for their head coach opening in January, but the Patriots “talked him out of” taking that interview and signed him to a long-term contract extension, which potentially could set him up to succeed Belichick as New England’s head coach down the road.
Belichick’s contract is likely for this year and next and Mayo could be the next man up.
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The question, of course, is how soon Kraft would be willing to begin the post-Belichick era.
While Rapoport did not disclose the specifics of the financial commitment from the Patriots to Belichick, one can assume that it would be expensive for team owner Robert Kraft to part ways with his longtime head coach.
The Patriots are currently hosting the Buffalo Bills at Gillette Stadium.
