Tom Brady's recent revelation about his departure from the New England Patriots has many rethinking one of the league's longest-lasting dynasties. Stephen A. Smith raised even more potential questions regarding Bill Belichick's handling of the end of the era with another eye-opening disclosure.

After Brady admitted to leaving the team due to “tension” with Belichick, Smith added to the fire by claiming he heard Belichick “refused” to keep the longtime quarterback on the roster. Smith revealed what he “heard” about the situation on the Tuesday edition of ESPN's ‘First Take.'

“I'll tell you what I was told,” Smith said. “What I was told — even when Tom Brady was walking out the door, if Bill Belichick had said to Tom Brady, ‘I don't want to lose you, I want you to stay,' Tom Brady's staying in New England. Bill Belichick refused to do that. That's what I was told.”

Brady revealed he felt “natural tension” with Belichick in his weekly newsletter, where he posted his thoughts on free agency. The seven-time Super Bowl champion said he felt he no longer aligned with the Patriots' direction near the end of his career and felt the split came naturally.

The divorce would end up favoring Brady significantly more than the Patriots. Brady went on to sign with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and add another Super Bowl to his robust legacy. New England seemed to be heading toward turning the offense to Jimmy Garoppolo but instead traded him to the San Francisco 49ers and subsequently signed veteran Cam Newton.

Belichick went on to coach the Patriots for four more seasons without Brady, going just 29-39 in that time. He briefly retired at the end of the 2023 season before shockingly returning to coach North Carolina, where he will begin in the fall.

Patriots' unstable quarterback room since Tom Brady's departure

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Since Brady's exit, the Patriots have seemingly been cursed by the quarterback Gods. Despite early promise from Mac Jones, the team has yet to find a permanent replacement.

Jones stepped into the picture after Newton's failed one-year stint. The former MVP threw for just 2.657 yards in 2020 with a horrendous eight-touchdown, 10-interception ratio. Newton re-signed with the Patriots the following offseason but was released after losing the training camp competition to Jones.

Replacing the most accomplished athlete of all time is virtually impossible, but New England has struggled to find any sort of consistency at quarterback. After a Pro Bowl rookie season, Jones gradually regressed each year, resulting in his benching during the 2023 season. The Patriots traded Jones to the Jacksonville Jaguars the following offseason, ending his chapter after just three years.

Since then, the Patriots have found a new hope in rookie Drake Maye, the No. 3 pick of the 2024 NFL Draft. In his first year, Maye showed signs of promise despite going 2-10 as a starter. The North Carolina product threw for 2,276 yards, 15 touchdowns and 10 interceptions in his inaugural campaign.

With Maye under center for the foreseeable future, the Patriots once again enter a new era in 2025. The team hired former linebacker Mike Vrabel as its next head coach after Jerod Mayo. Mayo, whom New England hired as Belichick's immediate replacement, lasted just one year on the job.