Patriots insider claims the decision to fire Bill Belichick has already been made

And the rumor mill just keeps on turning...

That certainly appears to be the case for the Patriots, with speculation surrounding the futures of Bill Belichick and Mac Jones continuing to dominate headlines and gossip since the first month of the season.

Now that Jones has been benched and the consensus believes his time in New England is likely over, the Boston media have shifted their focus back to Belichick, whose tenure with the team appears more in doubt as the weeks go by.

But instead of theorizing more about what Robert Kraft may decide at the end of the season, Tom Curran of NBC Sports Boston chose to drop a bombshell on Monday evening that didn't pick up much steam until the following day.

The longtime Patriots reporter revealed he was told five weeks ago that the organization had already made the decision to move on from Belichick by the end of the season. The alleged source cited how the team performed against the Colts in Germany as the final straw and how the games have fared since then has only solidified the decision even more.

Curran went on to say that Belichick is (obviously) still viewed as an asset, so Kraft will likely take advantage of that and choose to trade him to receive some sort of compensation heading into a critical offseason.

It seems like the only scenario that could happen, given all that Belichick has done for the team, and the benefit of a mutual parting ways makes the most sense.

But even if that were true, why is this "report" just now being revealed by Curran? The debate of Belichick's future has been discussed repeatedly this season, making it illogical to sit on this kind of information, if true, for over a month. Putting this out there now just feels like someone trying to get ahead of the inevitable reality or trying to dump on a team already in a bad spot.

On the other hand, it's certainly possible it's true since there have been rumblings of Kraft specifically considering options to replace Belichick with his eyes set on Mike Vrabel. He also hasn't shut down the consistent chatter about the head coach's job security and has had plenty of opportunities to do so.

And among the many rumors surrounding Belichick, no one has suggested his job is safe, other than the leaked report of a contract extension that was agreed to before the season. That seemed to shut down most of the conversation about his possible mid-season firing, but now we're right back to where it all started with the latest suggestion a decision has already been made.

Could this be an indication of what is really going on behind closed doors?

Did the loss in Germany embarrass the Krafts enough to finally decide to make such a significant move?

Will this really be a decision made just by the Krafts and not something mutually agreed upon?

If Belichick is let go, who will replace him?

There are so many questions left unanswered that won't be addressed until the end of the season.

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