Bill Belichick to Be Honored with Patriots Statue After He Retires, Robert Kraft Says

Tom Brady and Bill Belichick will forever be connected after leading the New England Patriots during their dynasty era, and the team plans on honoring that history by placing a statue of the head coach alongside the one already in place of his former quarterback.

"When that great 20-year era ended, it was always my intention to commission a statue for both Tommy and Bill when their respective careers were over, playing and coaching," Patriots CEO Robert Kraft said Wednesday, per Matt Geagan and Dan Roche of CBS Boston. "When Bill's coaching career ends, we look forward to sitting down with him and having a statue made to be right next to Tommy."

Brady's statue was unveiled in August.

It is anything but surprising that New England would put up a statue of Belichick, who is arguably the greatest coach in NFL history.

However, it is notable it was Kraft making those comments since, as Geagan and Roche put it, his relationship with Belichick has been "quite frosty" since the head coach's tenure ended after the 2023 season.

Between a forced and awkward moment at the roast of Brady to each of them taking perceived jabs at the other through the media, things have been tense at times. Still, Kraft wants to honor the legacy Belichick built in New England with a statue fittingly placed alongside Brady.

Belichick coached New England for 24 seasons from 2000 through 2023 and finished with a 266-121 record, nine Super Bowl appearances and six Lombardi Trophies. The team won three titles in a four-year span from the 2001 season through the 2004 one and then won three more championships in a five-year span from the 2014 season through the 2018 one.

It was essentially two dynasties during one tenure, and the constant for both was the presence of Belichick and Brady.

Brady added a seventh Super Bowl title after he left the Patriots to join the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, but he will still forever be remembered for his dominance at New England.

Belichick is attempting to build a post-Patriots legacy of his own in his first season as the head coach of North Carolina. His tenure got off to a bumpy start with a 48-14 loss to TCU in the season opener on Monday, he still has plenty of time to turn things around and find success.

But, just like Brady, it is his success in New England he will most be remembered for, and the team plans on honoring him accordingly.