Bill Belichick has been out of the NFL for two years, but his legacy continues to take some massive hits.
The New York Giants’ decision to fire head coach Brian Daboll on Monday is just the latest example — and it’s a potentially fatal one for the Belichick coaching tree.
Daboll was the last NFL head coach remaining with coaching ties to Belichick. After going 20-40-1 over his three-plus seasons, Daboll joins the likes of Jerod Mayo, Josh McDaniels, Brian Flores, Bill O’Brien, Matt Patrcia and Joe Judge as former Belichick assistants to get the axe.
Brian Daboll's dismissal means that there are no current NFL head coaches from Bill Belichick's tree.
— Seth Wickersham (@SethWickersham) November 10, 2025
It’s further proof that the old “Patriot Way” will never be replicated, at least not without Belichick and Tom Brady leading the way. The NFL continues to be dominated by disciples from the Andy Reid, Sean McVay and Kyle Shanahan systems — with one obvious outlier currently stacking wins in the house that Belichick built.
Mike Vrabel looks brilliant for forging his own coaching path after retiring as a player
Robert Kraft’s decision to pivot from Mayo to Vrabel this season felt natural. Both were first-team All-Pros under Belichick during their playing days, contributing to one of the greatest dynasties in the history of American sports.
But for an owner clearly looking to distance himself from the Belichick era going forward, Mayo and Vrabel could not be more different.
Mayo’s entire coaching career was forged in Foxboro, starting with his initial role as Belichick’s inside linebackers coach in 2019. Kraft believed in Mayo enough to make him Belichick’s successor as head coach in 2024, but it was painfully obvious from the start that Mayo wasn’t ready for such a jump.
Vrabel began his coaching career with his alma mater, as Ohio State’s linebackers coach. His first job as an NFL assistant was under a Belichick disciple — Bill O’Brien — with the Houston Texans, but he never left for home base; instead, he rose to Houston’s defensive coordinator before leaving to become head coach of the Tennessee Titans in 2018.
Vrabel’s decision to forge his own path — and coaching style — has obviously served him well. He was quickly labeled a culture-setter during his tenure with the Titans, and he’s proven that with his work for the now 8-2 Patriots in 2025.
We can’t say that about any other coach from Belichick’s tree, at least not at the NFL level. It all equates to another sizable dent in Belichick’s legacy, which has absorbed its fair share since Brady’s departure in 2020.