Focus is on Jets, not future
Belichick taking job week to week
Bill Belichick reflected on the Patriots’ New Year’s Eve loss to the Bills during his weekly interview on WEEI’s “The Greg Hill Show,” acknowledging the 27-21 defeat in Buffalo was the result of his own team’s mistakes.
“We put ourselves in a hole there in the second quarter, and then battled back, but couldn’t battle all the way back,” the coach said Tuesday morning. “It was just too much to give a good team like that.”
New England committed four turnovers.
“Each play had its own elements, but I’d just say in general the high level of execution that we needed on a couple of those plays we just didn’t have,” Belichick said, “and obviously we paid for it.”
Now 4-12 and guaranteed a last-place finish in the AFC East, the Patriots are in the midst of the worst season of Belichick’s long tenure.
Given the team’s struggles at quarterback, a subplot from the previous offseason was brought up: Did the Patriots consider pursuing Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson when the Baltimore signal-caller was potentially available?
“There are a lot of things that go on in the offseason,” Belichick said. “Each player has his own story.
“In Lamar’s case, there would’ve been a lot of moving parts on that one anyway, but I’ll discuss the players that are on the team, not the ones who aren’t on it. There are a lot of players out there that were available. They’re always available in the offseason. We talked to some of those players, from the agents and all that, but those conversations are on a whole other level, so we’ll just stick to the guys that are here.”
Belichick was asked if he would accept a scenario in which he remained Patriots coach but hired a general manager to help build the roster. Belichick currently occupies both roles.
“I appreciate the question,” he said. “Right now I’m looking at the Jets, trying to get ready to go on them.
“Look, it’s a lot of hypotheticals, a lot of ‘in the past, in the future.’ I’m really focused on what’s going on right now, and that’s what my job is. That’s what I’m trying to do, and that’s what I’m going to do.”
The single biggest question surrounding Belichick is what he foresees in 2024 — specifically, whether he will stay with the Patriots.
Belichick, questioned about fans’ interest in his future, offered a wider-angle explanation.
“Whatever success I have had, I’ve tried to go about my job the same way every week,” he said. “Win, lose, good years, bad years, whatever they are. Just each week, get ready to go for that week, do the best you can to help your team win, and after that game move on to the next one. And at the end of the season, that’s the end of the season.
“But on a week-to-week basis, I don’t want to spend time or get caught up in what happened five years ago, what’s going to happen two years from now, or a bunch of other random stuff. So, just working on the Jets.”
As someone who has notably avoided any presence on social media, Belichick even made a joke about how he might reveal his plans following the season.
“You know, if I was going to do anything, I’d put it out there on Twitter and MyFace so everybody could see it,” he quipped, “but if I don’t do that, then I’ll just keep it private.”
Given the schedule, the interview was Belichick’s last on WEEI for the 2023 season.
Will he be back for the regular segment in 2024?
“Again, I appreciate the question,” Belichick said, chuckling. “I’m working on the Jets.”