Stephen A. Smith Believes Tom Brady’s Exit Looms Over Bill Belichick

It's been an astounding dilemma around the NFL regarding why teams haven't been so eager to sign Bill Belichick, but the issues around the former Patriots head coach might go back to when Tom Brady left New England.

Belichick reportedly tried to drive Brady out since the 2014 season. That began a long-standing rift between the two. Robert Kraft chose Brady's side, and future concessions created friction between him and Belichick. The former Patriots head coach met with Brady during the 2021 season to patch things up, but the lack of success he's had without Brady continues to be a talking point around the league, including for Stephen A. Smith.

"You cannot be the guy that pushed Tom Brady out the door," Smith said on ESPN's "First Take" on Friday. "You swear that he doesn't have it anymore. That man goes on to win the Super Bowl, and you go on to nosedive. You miscalculated. You didn't evaluate him accurately. But more importantly, you didn't show him the deference and respect warranted to him. That kind of stain doesn't just resonate with players, it resonates with other executives, it resonates with owners.

"I don't believe that Bill Belichick would be in this position, despite his struggles, if Tom Brady had just retired and Bill Belichick to Tom Brady: 'Man, I'm gonna miss this brother. He's so special. I love him to death. I wish he didn't go, but Tom Brady says it's time to walk away.' And then you're trying to retool, retool, retool and retool, and that just didn't work out. That's not what happened."

When Belichick parted ways with New England this month, it was expected multiple teams would do whatever it took to sign, even playoff teams like the Dallas Cowboys or Buffalo Bills would fire their coaches just to acquire Belichick.

However, the Atlanta Falcons were the only team that emerged, and even after two interviews, they chose to name Raheem Morris as head coach. The lack of interest in Belichick might be a result of how he's run the Patriots in the past three seasons.

"When you push Tom Brady out the door, what do you do? You draft Mac Jones. Mac Jones had a pretty good rookie year. What do you do? You bring in Joe Judge and Matt Patricia as an offensive coordinator as opposed to somebody that was going to get him going. Why? Because those are your guys and you wanted to make sure that you displayed dominion over your habitat even at the expense of the collective whole and what was better for the franchise.

"That is what is being held against Bill Belichick because we all know he can coach. But the relationships, the lack thereof, not just with players but with everything, that is coming back to haunt him. That's why young blood and young thoroughbreds are getting these coaching opportunities, and nobody wanted to come his way."

It's growing increasingly likely Belichick might be taking 2024 off, but there could be plenty of options in 2025 if he wants them.