For almost a quarter century, Bill Belichick has preached ignoring and avoiding distractions as part of his control-even-the-smallest-of-details tenure running the Patriots.
But during that time, no franchise has been more overrun by distractions than the New England Patriots.
So it is fitting with a little irony sprinkled in, that in what could be his last week as the Patriots coach, not only is there a distraction, but he is the distraction.
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In a week with 11 games that have playoff implications, a postseason-irrelevant game between the Patriots and Jets is still getting national attention, and not good national attention, because Belichick is on the hot seat. It’s an awful season that’s capped off a lousy four-year stretch.
In addition to losing, this year had a fresh set of controversies for Belichick to be pathologically secretive about. His approach to his starting quarterback made Mac Jones vs. Bailey Zappe unnecessarily chaotic and his approach to Jack Jones, Trent Brown and J.C. Jackson kept those dramas alive longer than they had to be.
Now in a season where his team is out of the playoffs, he’s asking people to believe he’s not even thinking about his own future yet. Belichick is trying to act like none of this is happening. He used the same tired topic avoidance moves that he practiced with every questionable play call or roster decision. Every player on the current roster and a hefty percentage of the former ones have been asked about Belichick’s uncertain future as well as some of the former ones.
Q: Have you had any conversations with Robert Kraft about your future with the team?
A: “Yeah, I’m looking forward to working, getting ready for the Jets here.”
Belichick’s ham-handed obfuscation, which used to seem like a power move, now looks more like taking shelter until the storm passes.
The biggest indication that some significant news is coming is that Robert Kraft has been as quiet as Belichick. If Kraft planned to keep Belichick, he could have ended these shenanigans weeks ago, the way the Jets did with Robert Saleh, but Kraft has continued to let things escalate. As a result, every conversation the Patriots owner has in his suite during games or on the sideline before them is analyzed to fill the enormous void.
Like a season winding down on a popular TV show, everyone is curious about how this cliffhanger wraps up. Will Bill Belichick and Robert Kraft stay together or will Belichick spin his career off elsewhere? The fact that the final game is against the New York Jets, whom Belichick famously left at the altar almost exactly 24 years ago only enhances the drama.
Sam and Diane or Ross and Rachel were junior varsity compared to this.
Follow MassLive sports columnist Matt Vautour on Twitter at @MattVautour424.
