Tom Brady joined the chorus of voices questioning Bill Belichick's snub from the Pro Football Hall of Fame, saying the voting committee's decision is “completely ridiculous.”
Brady expressed his opinion on the news during an interview with Seattle Sports 710-AM on Wednesday, a day after ESPN reported that Belichick fell short of the 40 of 50 votes needed for induction into the Hall during his first year of eligibility.
“I don't understand it,” said Brady, who played with Belichick for 20 seasons with the New England Patriots. “I mean, I was with him every day. If he's not a first-ballot Hall of Famer, there's really no coach who should be a first-ballot Hall of Famer, which is completely ridiculous because people deserve that.
“It's unbelievable. There's no coach I'd rather play for. If I pick a coach to go out and win a Super Bowl (give me one season), I'll take Bill Belichick. So I've said enough.”
The quarterback and coaching combination of Brady and Belichick teamed up to lead the Patriots to six Super Bowl victories and nine conference championships. Multiple sources who spoke with Belichick over the weekend described him as “bewildered” and “disappointed” by his inability to get the support of at least 80% of the Hall committee members.
Belichick was one of five finalists among coaches, contributors and senior players who last appeared in a game in 2000 or earlier. Patriots owner Robert Kraft was the final contributor, with Roger Craig, Ken Anderson and LC Greenwood as players.
“Whatever perceptions there may be about the personal differences between Bill and me, I firmly believe that Bill Belichick's record and work speak for themselves,” Kraft said in a statement Wednesday to The Associated Press.
“As head coach of the New England Patriots for more than two decades, he set the standard for on-field excellence, coaching and sustained success in the National Football League's free agency and salary cap era. He is the greatest coach of all time and unequivocally deserves to be a unanimous first-ballot member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame.”
Belichick has a career NFL record of 333-178, including playoffs, second only to Don Shula's 347 in terms of all-time coaching wins. Belichick was also one of the NFL's top defensive assistants before taking over New England, winning two Super Bowls previously as the New York Giants' defensive coordinator.
Belichick's career had its imperfections. He was implicated in a sign-stealing scandal called Spygate in the 2007 season and was fined $500,000 after the team was caught filming New York Jets defensive signs during a game.
Brady, who will be eligible for induction into the Hall in 2028, cited “popularity” and “the voting world” in discussing the snub, but also emphasized that Belichick will eventually be enshrined in Canton.
“When it comes to votes and popularity and all that, then welcome to the world of voting,” Brady said. “You could also go to the Oscars and have a big panel tell you if you're good or not. Unfortunately, that's how it works. He's going into the Hall of Fame. In the end, I'm not worried about that.”
Several other prominent football figures, including Hall of Fame coach Jimmy Johnson and Kansas City Chiefs star quarterback Patrick Mahomes, shared their shocked reactions to Belichick's snub.
Belichick's tenure in New England ended after the 2023 season. He just finished his first year coaching at the University of North Carolina.
OutKick senior NFL writer and Hall of Fame voter Armando Salguero introduced Belichick at the Hall subcommittee meeting that selected him to advance to the full 50-member selection body. Salguero then introduced Belichick to the full selectmen's committee at a Jan. 13 meeting.
Salguero is among the voters who elected Belichick and are urging others to come forward.
“They should be identified as the people who kept Belichick out of the Pro Football Hall of Fame this year,” Salguero wrote in a column. “I'm saying that here, and I'd say it to his face. His votes sunk Belichick's chances and embarrassed the Hall of Fame in the process.
“They make all the selectors look bad, and they shouldn't hide behind their minority vote to protect themselves at the expense of the broader group. I know it's a broader group because I've talked to many selectors since our meeting and they agreed with my vote for Belichick.”
Brady added Wednesday that when Belichick is finally inducted, he will “have a great turnout” of people in Canton to celebrate his historic career.
“Many times in life for all of us, things don't happen exactly the way you want or on your schedule,” Brady said. “But we will all be there to celebrate it when it happens, and it will be well attended by so many players, coaches who appreciated everything he did, the commitment he made to win and the impact he had on all of our lives.”
On Wednesday, the Pro Football Hall of Fame issued a statement that did not name Bill Belichick but said it “understands and respects the passionate reaction of many fans, members of the media and the Hall's own faithful in light of published reports regarding the voting results for the Class of 2026.”
The Hall of Fame said that if any member of the 50-member selection body “violated the bylaws of the selection process, it understands that action will be taken.”
“That could include the possibility of such selectors not remaining members of the committee in the future,” the statement said. “The selection of a new class is the most important duty that the Hall of Fame oversees each year, and the integrity of that process cannot be questioned.”
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
