Bill Belichick reportedly shopping post-Patriots project that may disappoint

Ian Mohr of Page Six reported on Tuesday night that former New England Patriots head coach Bill Belichick is “shopping a book” after failing to land a job with a different organization this winter.

Diehard football fans may be disappointed by Belichick’s first known post-Patriots project.

According to Mohr, Belichick’s book is “more of the business variety” and thus won’t offer behind-the-scenes looks at the 71-year-old’s relationships with individuals such as legendary quarterback Tom Brady and Patriots owner Robert Kraft. Kraft essentially showed Belichick the door in January after the Patriots missed the playoffs for a third time in four years.

“It’s the big business imprints that are the ones meeting and bidding on it,” a source told Mohr about the book.

Belichick supporters can’t be blamed for wanting to know what the six-time Super Bowl champion head coach has to say about his 24-season tenure with the Patriots now that all episodes of the “The Dynasty” docuseries have been released. Ben Axelrod of Awful Announcing noted earlier this month that well-known Boston sports personality Bill Simmons called the Apple TV+ program “so anti-Belichick and so pro-Kraft that it’s hard for me to wrap my head around.” Per Keagan Stiefel of NESN, Patriots legend Devin McCourty recently said he felt “duped” regarding his participation in the documentary that “only hit anything that was negative.”

Among the many things said about Belichick during “The Dynasty,” the show leaves little doubt that the coach’s alleged treatment of Brady was why the future Hall of Famer left the Patriots as a free agent following the 2019 NFL season.

Belichick may have multiple non-personal reasons for not wishing to use a book to respond to certain portions of “The Dynasty” at this time. It’s believed he could spend at least part of the upcoming fall working as an analyst for one of the NFL’s media partners or for Peyton Manning’s Omaha Productions. It was also reported in February that “multiple [NFL team] owners reached out to Belichick about next year’s hiring cycle” shortly after Atlanta Falcons owner Arthur Blank went in a different direction for his latest head-coaching hire.

As much as members of the football community may want Belichick to share never-before-heard stories about what became the NFL’s first dynasty of the 2000s, he seemingly is saving such tales for himself until further notice.

Daily news and links for Wednesday.

TEAM TALK

• Patriots 2024 Mock Draft Tracker and Free Agent Tracker.
• Transaction: Patriots sign unrestricted free agent WR K.J. Osborn.
• Evan Lazar’s Film Review: Breaking down QB Jacoby Brissett’s role with the Patriots.
• Patriots Unfiltered: Deep dive into Patriots FA moves, should New England trade down? (2 hours)

LOCAL LINKS

• Andy Hart pinpoints the greatest unknown in the Patriots’ rebuild: How long will it take? Clearly, after a rather frugal, conservative path through his first run at free agency, the de facto GM Wolf seems to be taking anything but a quick-fix approach.
• Doug Kyed examines the Patriots 2024 depth chart to se where the roster stands after free agency.
• Taylor Kyles grades the Patriots’ offense after the initial wave of free agency.
• Chad Finn feels that with good-not-great-results in free agency, the Pats really need this draft to be a hit.
• Clare Cooper takes a look at what the Patriots have at the TE position and what TEs they could acquire in the draft.
• Mike Kadlick profiles the top 5 edge rushers in this year’s draft class.
• Alex Barth notes that with Trent Brown signing a 1-year deal with the Bengals, the Pats now need a new left tackle.
• Andrew Callahan explains how RB Antonio Gibson could change the Patriots new offense.
• Taylor Kyles notes Antonio Gibson tells reporters he’s more than a third-down back.
• Matt Dolloff identifies five free agents to know for the Patriots in the second wave of free agency.
• Alex Barth tells us the Patriots top staffers, including Eliot Wolf and Jerod Mayo, are expected to be at all the top quarterback pro days this year.
• Nick O’Malley notes the Patriots cleared cap space by releasing Chris Board. Now, they’re set to get even more money thanks to him signing with the Ravens.
• Christopher Price’s Patriots mailbag: There could be more roster-building before next month’s draft.
• Nick O’Malley highlights ESPN’s Mel Kiper Jr., who says he’s ‘not as confident’ the Patriots take a QB at No. 3.
• Harrison Reno reports Deatrich Wise Jr just became an owner of the Beaumont Renegades, an upcoming expansion team in American Indoor Football.
• Eye On Foxborough podcast: Karen Guregian and Chris Mason talk with Rob Gronkowski about ‘The Dynasty’, the Patriots without Bill Belichick, Malcolm Butler, and more. (32 min.)

NATIONAL NEWS

• Staff (ESPN) Bengals sign OT Trent Brown to fortify offensive line.
• Cody Benjamin (CBS Sports) Top 10 offseason moves so far.
• Frank Schwab (Yahoo! Sports) NFL free agency: The good, bad and ugly.
• Experts (ESPN) 2024 NFL free agency: Experts debate best, worst deals.
• Jordan Dajani (CBS Sports) Former Chargers WR Mike Williams joins Jets on one-year deal worth up to $15 million.
• Danny Kelly (The Ringer) The top 70 players in the NFL Draft.
• Nate Tice (Yahoo! Sports) NFL Draft 2024: Top 50 big board is heavy on offense, starting with Drake Maye and Caleb Williams at the top.
• Danny Kelly (The Ringer) Is J.J. McCarthy actually worth a top 10 pick? Buzz is growing for the Michigan quarterback, but opinions on him vary wildly.
• Ben Solak (The Ringer) NFL Mock Draft: How free agency has shaken up the first round. Pats pick North Carolina QB Drake Maye at No. 3: I am not sold on the Patriots staying here and taking whichever top quarterback remains—a trade back would make a ton of sense for a team with needs all across the roster. But considering the Patriots’ behavior in free agency—bolstering the offensive line with Michael Onwenu and Chuks Okorafor; securing wide receiver Kendrick Bourne and trying to sign free agent WR Calvin Ridley—they seem to be setting the table for a rookie quarterback. More.
• Eric Edholm (NFL.com) Post-free agency power rankings. Patriots 30th.

EXTRACURRICULAR

• Mike Florio (ProFootballTalk) Devin McCourty, Rodney Harrison discuss their disappointment with “The Dynasty”. Bottom line? Players didn’t rush for the exits. They wanted to stay.
• Mike Kadlick relays Devin McCourty and Rodney Harrison giving their opinions on ‘The Dynasty. McCourty: I got ‘duped’. Harrison on Belichick: “He gives guys who are the underdog an opportunity. No one talks about that. When everybody else is done with a guy, he brings in a Corey Dillion, he brings in a Randy Moss, he brings in a Rodney Harrison. And I just don’t think he got enough credit, enough respect, enough props. Man, this dude is the greatest coach of all time.”
• Chris Mason notes Gronk said he wouldn’t be where he is today without Bill Belichick’s tough coaching, and passionately defends Belichick’s Patriots legacy.
• Mark Maske (Washington Post) Tom Brady’s bid to own a stake in the Raiders is likely to remain on hold. [Free]