The New England Patriots are reportedly interested in trading Bill Belichick following a disappointing 4-13 season. The Patriots failed to make the playoffs for a second consecutive season. We’ll look at a trade proposal that the Los Angeles Chargers could send the Patriots for Belichick.
DraftKings sportsbook gives the Chargers the best odds of landing Belichick for the 2024 season. The odds make sense with how the Chargers cleaned house when they fired head coach Brandon Staley and general manager Tom Telesco last month.
Per the Associated Press, John Spanos, Chargers’ president of football operations, hinted the team wanted to hire a head coach with prior experience:
After last week’s firings of Brandon Staley and general manager Tom Telesco, John Spanos acknowledged experience might be be a bigger factor this time.
“I don’t think it can be the end-all, but absolutely it will factor. That’s an added bonus if someone does have previous head coach experience,” Spanos, the team’s president of football operations and the son of owner Dean Spanos, said Monday.
Belichick has been successful as a general manager and head coach for two decades. Belichick’s name was linked to the Chargers, specifically after Telesco was fired. However, Belichick has struggled with both duties in the post-Tom Brady era.
The 71-year-old head coach wouldn’t have a quarterback problem to rebuild with the Chargers. He’d inherit Justin Herbert and other star players on both sides of the ball. The Chargers’ number one problem this season was with coaching. Belichick would fix that.
The New England Patriots want compensation for Belichick
The Patriots want to get something in return for parting ways with Belichick. Per CBS Sports, NFL Media reported the Patriots ownership would prefer to trade Belichick instead of firing him:
A few weeks ago, it was revealed that Belichick agreed to a new and “lucrative” contract with the Patriots over the offseason. This latest report from NFL Media illuminates that deal a little more, revealing that Belichick is under contract “at least” this year and the 2024 season.
And if the two sides did elect to part ways this coming offseason and Belichick still wanted to coach somewhere in the league, Kraft would want some sort of compensation from whatever team that is trying to install the future Hall of Famer as their newest coach.
This trade sends Belichick to the Chargers
The Chargers should be willing to give up some draft capital to trade for Belichick. The Chargers would be in “win now” mode with Belichick in Los Angeles. Because of Belichick’s age and recent record, he’d likely cost less than what the Chargers AFC West rival, the Denver Broncos, gave up to trade for Sean Payton last year.
Patriots receive
- 2024 Second-round pick
Chargers receive
- Belichick
This trade would make for an exciting AFC West. The head coaches in the division would include Andy Reid (Kansas City Chiefs), Payton, and Belichick. The Las Vegas Raiders still need to fill their head coaching vacancy.
The Patriots are biding their time to decide on Belichick’s future with the team. They’re likely seeing if it’s possible to get a trade done. While a Belichick trade isn’t the most probable outcome, the Chargers would be one of the better trade suitors for the Patriots.
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