Bill Belichick isn’t the only key figure from the New England Patriots dynasty who won’t be getting into the Pro Football Hall of Fame this year.
Team owner Robert Kraft also failed to receive enough votes to be included in the Class of 2026, according to multiple media outlets. The inductees will be announced Thursday night at the NFL Honors ceremony in San Francisco.
Kraft was among the many people who expressed disbelief last week when the news surfaced that Belichick, who coached the Patriots to six Super Bowl victories and nine appearances in the NFL’s championship game, would not be entering the Hall of Fame in his first year of eligibility.
“Whatever perceptions may exist about any personal differences between Bill and me, I strongly believe Bill Belichick’s record and body of work speak for themselves,” Kraft said in a statement.
“He is the greatest coach of all time,” he added, “and he unequivocally deserves to be a unanimous first-ballot Pro Football Hall of Famer.”
Belichick and Kraft were part of a pool of candidates separate from that of the modern-era players. Belichick was this year’s finalist in the coaches category, while Kraft was the finalist in the contributors category. Three former players — Ken Anderson, Roger Craig and L.C. Greenwood — were selected as finalists in the seniors category.
The 50 members of the Hall’s selection committee were allowed to vote for up to three of those five finalists. A maximum of three of those finalists can make it into the Hall by receiving at least 80% of the votes. If none of them gets 80%, then the person receiving the most votes makes the cut.
Kraft was first nominated for the Hall of Fame in 2013 and was a finalist for the first time this year. He has made it to the Super Bowl 11 times since buying the Patriots in 1994, more than any team owner in NFL history.
While Kraft may not have his name announced as a Hall of Famer this week, he could be getting a pretty decent consolation prize days later — if coach Mike Vrabel, quarterback Drake Maye and the rest of the current Patriots bring home the Lombardi Trophy by beating the Seattle Seahawks in Super Bowl LX.
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