There’s still one Belichick left standing for the New England Patriots.
With Bill Belichick gone and Steve Belichick taking on a new coaching role at the University of Washington, safeties coach Brian Belichick is officially the last Belichick standing in New England. ESPN’s Mike Reiss reported Brian was staying with the Patriots on Wednesday.
Both Steve and Brian were offered open opportunities to return as coaches, if they decided to stick around with the team. Brian has worked extensively with Patriots coach Jerod Mayo on the defensive side of the ball. So there’s clearly a significant level of comfort between the two.
The Patriots are moving forward with former defensive line coach DeMarcus Covington as their new defensive coordinator. Along with Brian and Mayo, Covington helped make the Patriots one of the top defensive units in the NFL in 2023.
It could be a tough transitional year in the defensive backfield, if the team loses Kyle Dugger in free agency. Devin McCourty retired before the season, and Dugger will test the free agent market in March.
Brian will have his work cut out for him in keeping the unit from falling off a cliff during an obvious rebuild.