Great players begat great coaches. Great coaches begat great players.
Jordan couldn’t win without Phil. Phil couldn’t win without Micheal, Scottie, Kobe, and Shaq. It’s not as simple as that. Coaches complement players. Players complement coaches. Bad coaches don’t win with great players. Great coaches don’t win with bad players.
Curious why? Both alleged cheaters with very good stats.
If a voter said that Belichick cheated and the voter wanted to make a statement about that by keeping him out for a year, I can understand that rationale. Not saying I’d agree, but I can understand or respect it. But, keeping him out because he was rude?
This is what I figured. It was just some form of odd protest. Which if so, is lame.
I always thought of some (not all) sportswriters as glorified autograph seekers who were excited to be “friends” with pro athletes.
I have no inside information, but I wouldn’t be surprised. These guys see a lot of each other, and he actively tried to make their jobs difficult. I can see some of them saying, “F… that guy. He was a jerk.” I like that you think the best of people though.
What I find a bit odd about having multiple chances to get voted into the HoF is that
(1) It’s supposed to be an individual honor/achievement;
(2) But a lot depends on who else is eligible and being voted on that year.
‘1’ implies an absolute. ‘2’ implies that it’s all relative.
Belichik didn’t get in on this first time, because votes went to others. So he may get in next year or later. But it’s not as if his credentials for consideration to the HoF will be different next year, or later years.
Per Mike Sando at The Athletic:
This year, Belichick is competing for one to three spots in the coach/contributor/senior category (which is separate from the 15 modern-era finalists like Drew Brees and Larry Fitzgerald), alongside four other candidates:
Patriots owner Robert Kraft
Former 49ers RB Roger Craig
Former Bengals QB Ken Anderson
Former Steelers DE L.C. Greenwood
The 50 Hall of Fame voters each choose three of those five candidates. It’s a zero-sum game, with each competing for 150 total votes. The leading vote-getter will always make it in, but two others can earn enshrinement by getting 40-plus of those votes.
What might’ve happened here? Hypothetically:
Let’s say four or five voters were strong advocates for specific senior players, figuring Belichick was going to make it regardless.
A few additional voters could’ve also prioritized those players, who might otherwise disappear into the senior pool forever.
A couple more voters might’ve found Belichick’s involvement in Spygate/cheating disqualifying or at least deserving a one-year punishment.
And then one or two voters might’ve protested the new rules (which make coaches eligible one year after retiring instead of five).
In that case, Belichick could fall short of the 40-vote threshold for enshrinement, even if every single voter actually thought he was worthy of a gold jacket.
Whatever the reasoning, I see this outlier result as a reflection of the new voting rules, not as a reflection of Belichick. Additional changes to the process are surely coming, in my view.
There is no good argument that three of those four were better at their roles than Belichick was at his. Picking three of them over Belichick means you’re employing some other metric, such as integrity or likability. And, picking your fourth choice because you thought a better choice was a shoo-in and thus didn’t need your vote? That’s terrible. Though, some voters may think that way.
They got Belichek wrong but at least they are keeping Eli Manning out.
Manning belongs in the HoF too. Every other eligible QB with 2 or more SB wins is in the Hall except Jim Plunkett. Every eligible QB with 2 or more SB MVPs is in the Hall.
He’ll definitely get in eventually.
HoF just for this play call.
Manning stats
117-117 as starting qb. 366 Td. 244 Int. 1.5-1 td to int ratio.
No all pro honors. 4 pro bowls in 16 seasons.
Those stats don’t even qualify him for the hall of very good.
Unfortunately you are right that he will eventually be elected.
Yes, he retired from the NFL to take the UNC gig, but suppose he changes his mind and comes back?
2-0 in the Superbowl against Brady, Belichick. Only QB to beat a team trying to complete a perfect season.
Should Don Larsen be in the BB HoF? 1956 WS perfect game and MVP. Lifetime stats meh, similar to Manning. At some point shouldn’t a HoF be for sustained excellence? The BB HoF does have an exhibit dedicated to Larsen which seems like something that would be appropriate for Manning.
Kraft denied. Maybe there is an anti NE bias after all…
I think the drop kick should be worth two points from the two yard line…would make things much more interesting for two point conversion personnel on defense and not (at least presently) as automatic as a PAT
If Jerry Jones and 15 other owners are in the HOF, what is the argument against Kraft? Maybe voters didn’t like the idea of having both Kraft and Belichick in the same year, so we got neither?
Or they could be sending a message about cheating? If Brady doesn’t get in first ballot then we have our most reasonable answer.