Bill Belichick cemented himself as one of the greatest coaches in NFL history years ago, yet he still finds himself on the sidelines for the New England Patriots at the age of 71. Belichick is currently the longest-tenured coach in the NFL and is two wins away from becoming the third coach in league history with 300 regular season wins.

Some might wonder why a coach as accomplished as Belichick would continue to stay in the league, especially after his team missed the playoffs in two of the last three seasons. Belichick has his reasons though, as if he needs them, for wanting to break the record for most wins and it has to do with the man he needs to beat.

According to Christopher Price, Belichick is out to break the record because Shula “badmouthed” him during the infamous ‘Spygate' scandal in 2007.

“The Spygate thing has diminished what they've accomplished,” Shula said, via Dov Kleiman. “You would hate to have that attached to your accomplishments. They’ve got it.”

If that is indeed why Belichick is sticking around, it is quite something. His character and personality have always been a topic of discussion in NFL circles, but this would push Belichick into another realm if it were true. We might never know, but it's fascinating to think about.

Record hunting

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There is a world in which that reaction from Belichick to Shula's comments is nothing more than a brush off and the Patriots head coach is simply chasing the record because he's close enough to reach it. That may still be and likely is the case.

Though the Patriots have played fairly well over the last three seasons, it's been that long since they were a consistent winner. The Patriots won 10 or more games every season from 2003-2019, with Belichick racking up the wins as the leader of arguably the greatest dynasty in North American sports history.

Belichick owns the most postseason and Super Bowl wins in NFL history for a head coach, putting him in elite company and perhaps making him the gold standard when it comes to NFL head coaches. He doesn’t yet have the most regular season wins though, which is something he is almost certainly motivated to accomplish, especially now that he's so close.

The Patriots would need to average 10 wins in each of the next three seasons for him to tie the record. That would take him to the 2026 season, which would be his 27th season with the Patriots and put him at 74 years old. Unless Pete Carroll continues to coach until then, that would make Belichick the oldest head coach in NFL history.

There is also the possibility that Bill Belichick loves football too much to let it go. The Patriots may be ready to move on soon, but Belichick has earned every right to go out on his own terms. Breaking a record is one thing, but giving up something you've known your whole life is another.