Bill Belichick's Fatal Flaw Could Make Seattle His Perfect Fit

For the past 20+ years, Bill Belichick has been tied to the New England Patriots. The coach and franchise were a packaged deal; it was almost impossible to imagine one existing without the other. But now, that relationship has come to an end, with the two parties going their separate ways.

At this point, the hoodie-wearing head coach's future is up in the air. He could take a well-deserved breather, whether that's a short-term hiatus or a proper retirement. Maybe a TV career is on the cards. Or, given that he's a football lifer, Belichick could throw himself right back into the fray and take on a new challenge.

Should he pick the latter path, he'll have his pick of jobs. When you have an all-time resume in your back pocket, employers are going to be rather receptive to your approach.

But given his ultimate downfall in New England, one club could be a potential fit for the living legend: the Seattle Seahawks. And it all comes down to the front office.

Belichick Was Hamstrung by Personnel Decisions

As his resume indicates, it's impossible to argue with Belichick's coaching chops. In recent years, though, his general managerial skills have left something to be desired.

While there once was a time when the coach seemed to have a magic touch—he was able to pluck players out of obscurity, turn them into stars and then replace them when necessary—the Patriots roster degraded over the years. The devolution could be seen at quarterback, where Tom Brady was never truly replaced. Even if there wasn't anyone who could directly step in for the GOAT out there, there had to be someone better than Cam Newton, Mac Jones, Brian Hoyer or Bailey Zappe available.

And Jones was emblematic of another issue: the poor use of draft picks.

Those selections can seem like a gamble, but the draft is a fine way to stock the cupboard with affordable talent. That's, after all, how legends like Brady, Rob Gronkowski and Vince Wilfork landed in Foxborough. But for whatever reason, the Patriots have kept swinging and missing as of late.

Add some questionable trades and iffy free-agent signings into the mix, and you have the recipe for a lack of overall talent. And that's what anonymous NFL execs saw during the season.

"Quite simply, they have no talent," one told Sports Illustrated's Albert Breer, for example. "And it doesn't help that that's at the quarterback spot as well."

Whether the roster construction was an oversight, a tactical choice or simply the reality of where the Patriots stand in the current NFL landscape, it fell at Belichick's feet. As the club's de facto GM, he bore responsibility.

Seattle Has a Strong GM to Work With Belichick

At the end of the 2023 regular season, Belichick said he was willing to give up his general manager duties if the Patriots asked. While that offer seems now to be irrelevant, it could provide a clue as to a future fit.

If we consider the teams with current head coaching openings, one organization stands above the rest when it comes to general managers. The Seattle Seahawks, who relieved Pete Carroll of his duties, have John Schneider at the helm.

In April 2023, Schneider was landed at ninth in Gregg Rosenthal's NFL.com general manager power rankings.

"It's great to see Schneider smiling again, even if I'm dubious about the Seahawks speed dating the draft's top prospects. Seattle's 2022 draft class could help keep Schneider smiling and employed another five years," the list explained. "He helped lock in two starting tackles, a top-shelf cornerback, a starting running back and two other contributors. The Seahawks' latest big-name forays into free agency (Bobby Wagner, Dre'Mont Jones) have made sense, even if the defensive line is still an issue.

"Most importantly, Schneider and Pete Carroll executed one of the trades of the decade by unloading Russell Wilson for a massive haul at the perfect time, moving on from a franchise icon without having to rebuild. I'm not going to give the front office too much credit for Geno Smith's rise, seeing how he sat unsigned in free agency for more than a month last year, but the extension this year was a win-win for both sides."

And even though the Seahawks didn't make the playoffs, the underlying points still stand. Seattle had a strong draft, and the current roster boasts three talented receivers; that's a position that Belichick struggled to fill. There's also some capable defensive talent, which the bench boss would appreciate.

The biggest question mark remains at quarterback, but you could still argue that the NFC club has enough to get by. Smith might not be the next Tom Brady, but his past two seasons have been better than what Mac Jones could muster.

Elsewhere, ESPN compiled a ranking of how much value NFL teams got out of their draft picks in April 2022. The Seahawks clocked in at number 1, piling up a Career Approximate Value Over Expected (CAVOE) of draft picks, 2012-2021 of 176.6. The Patriots, for what it's worth, ranked seventh with a CAVOE of 72.3, although the 2016 draft class was carrying most of that water.

Remember, Belichick's downfall was the personnel side of things. The Patriots struggled to select top-end talent and didn't do the best work in free agency. Now juxtapose those shortcomings against Rosenthal's description of Schneider's work. Anything sound familiar?

While it might sound counterintuitive—this is a living legend we're talking about—the current version of Belichick should be reined in. He has an all-time football mind and can cook up a game plan like no one's business, but he can't be calling all the personnel shots. He can provide input but allowing him to be the loudest voice in the room no longer looks like the recipe for success. Pairing him up with an accomplished general manager, though, will allow him to focus on coaching the team, and few men are better at that specific task.

It, of course, remains to be seen what the hoodie-wearing head coach will do. He's certainly earned the right to live a life in leisure in retirement, should he want to put his feet up. Maybe he wants to step into a rebuild to prove that he can still build a roster. Perhaps he'll join the Chargers because they have the most ready-made quarterback.

When we're trying to read the tea leaves, though, it's easy to focus on the on-field fit. But when we're talking about a head coach, the entire organization matters. And Seattle would provide that crucial check and balance from above that Belichick lacked.