Rumor suggests things could get uglier between Bill Belichick and Robert Kraft

Although the announcement of Bill Belichick's departure from the Patriots after 24 years was shocking on the surface, the tension between the head coach and Robert Kraft had been brewing for quite some time. Ultimately, the situation came to a head, resulting in the breakup.

There had been rumblings of toxicity behind the scenes, something a few players have discussed in interviews over the last few years. The toxicity is rumored to have initially derived from Belichick's refusal to keep Tom Brady from leaving the team in 2020.

Kraft seemingly never forgave him for allowing the quarterback to go, adding to the pre-existing issues between the duo.

Things had apparently gotten so bad between Belichick and Kraft that rumors suggested the Patriots owner attempted to (and possibly successfully) intervene in Belichick's interviewing process for the Falcons head coaching vacancy, which he ultimately did not get.

That appeared to be the tip of the iceberg regarding the long-standing drama even after Belichick left the team in January. However, Pro Football Talk's Mike Florio discussed a new potential drama that could unfold as a result of the head coach not securing a position elsewhere in the league for the 2024 season.

Things could get ugly if Robert Kraft decides to make this a big deal

Because it was assumed Belichick would easily land a head coaching gig for the season ahead, something even Kraft mentioned during the departing press conference, the Patriots were expected to receive a "partial offset" since he was still under contract for (at least) one more year.

Since that didn't happen, and he is instead pursuing a career in the media before embarking on a return to the NFL in 2025, New England is not entitled to that credit.

Florio mentions that Kraft could make a fuss about it if he wanted to and believes the Patriots owner could make a good case to receive the credit. However, he does state that there has been no evidence of Kraft wanting to go down this path, which is hopefully the case.

“If the Patriots want to play hardball with Belichick (and there’s no obvious reason to think they do), they could try to argue that they should be entitled to a partial offset for whatever Belichick is due to make this year while not coaching the Patriots. If he’d taken the job, they would have gotten the offset. By not taking the job, the Patriots could claim they should still get the credit.”

Although it would make sense for the team to be upset about not receiving a credit after they were convinced they would, it's not necessary for Kraft to make this a big deal and cause more distraction.

The Patriots are looking forward and not in the rearview mirror. Things became awkward with Belichick and still appear not to be so good, so stirring up some more controversy like this would negatively impact what they're trying to accomplish in Foxboro in 2024 and beyond.

Not to mention, because of the history of Roger Goodell's unfair judgment and treatment toward the Patriots in the past, it would be fascinating for Kraft to believe that the commissioner would do anything to appease their loss of a credit due to Belichick not landing a head coaching gig for the season ahead.

The chances of that happening are likely less than zero, making it an even more pointless pursuit.

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