Bill Belichick will return to coach Patriots in 2023, won't commit to QB Mac Jones as starter
Bill Belichick, who will turn 71 in April, told the media on Monday that he will return to coach the New England Patriots in 2023, marking his 24th season on the job.
There was no fanfare around Belichick's announcement, which is par for the course. For him, there's no other way.
#Patriots coach Bill Belichick tells reporters that he'll be back for another season in 2023 and, "the process will start today." He'll meet with owner Robert Kraft like every year, coaches and players. "It'll be a comprehensive course of action."
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) January 9, 2023
He spared barely eight words on the actual announcement before saying this offseason will be starting like any other. He'll meet with Patriots owner Robert Kraft, the coaches and the players and then decide, as he said, "a comprehensive course of action." With the Pats finishing the season 8-9 and out of the playoffs, Belichick knows the team needs to improve.
Belichick brief reflex on szn: "Our record is right around .500 which is what it's been kind of all year. with that, some good things and some not so good things. So nobody's satisfied with that. That's not our goal. And we need to try to improve on that. Need to improve on it." pic.twitter.com/IOjpUTkg3C
— Michael Hurley (@michaelFhurley) January 9, 2023
Belichick won't commit to Jones as starter
There's one position where the Pats can obviously get better: quarterback. Mac Jones started 14 of 17 games, and "lackluster" would be too kind to describe his performance. His offensive line didn't always help him out, but Jones as starting QB leaves a lot to be desired. (Like, a lot.)
Belichick is no fool. He knows what he has (and doesn't have) in Jones. So when he was asked about Jones starting at QB for the 2023 season, Belichick hedged hard and wouldn't commit.
Bill Belichick on Mac Jones:
"Mac has the ability to play quarterback in this league. We all have to work together to find the best way as a football team, obviously quarterback is a big position, to be more productive."
— lindsey ok (@lindseyyok) January 9, 2023
Belichick also talked briefly about having Joe Judge and Matt Patricia on his staff, former Patriots assistant coaches who had gone out into the world to seek their own head coaching fortunes and were now back in the fold after being fired. Belichick admitted that maybe it wasn't the best thing for him to bring back those guys and give one of them (Patricia) the job of offensive coordinator.
Asked about appointing Patricia and Judge, Belichick said he'll always do what's best for the Patriots and adds, "Have I made mistakes? Yeah, sure. Plenty of them."
— Mark Daniels (@MarkDanielsPJ) January 9, 2023
Belichick always wants to do right by His Guys, but when branches of your coaching tree are cut off, maybe you shouldn't try to stick them back onto the tree with duct tape and a prayer.
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