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Another Pro Football Hall of Fame voter who didn’t check off Bill Belichick’s name for the class of 2026 has come forward and explained his choice.
He also chose New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft over Belichick.
FOX59/CBS4 Sports reporter Mike Chappell, who covered the Indianapolis Colts for over 40 years, was the second voter to come forward and explain his decision on why he didn’t vote for Belichick in a column published this week.
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Former New England Patriots head coach Bill Belichick spoke to the media at Gillette Stadium about his departure. (John Tlumacki/The Boston Globe via Getty Images)
Kansas City Star’s Vahe Gregorian was the first to do so and also wrote a column.
Like Gregorian, Chappell noted that being forced to pick up to three names from the five-man group with Belichick, Kraft and three senior members made it difficult. Chappell chose two of the senior candidates, believing it to be their last chance to enter the hallowed halls of Canton.
With that, Kraft and Belichick were back. He chose the former.
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“As one of 50 voters, I voted FOR Robert Kraft, the longtime and accomplished New England Patriots owner,” Chappell wrote in his column. “I did not vote AGAINST Bill Belichick, the longtime and accomplished head coach of that dynasty. I realize it is a difference without a difference, but I am comfortable with my decision.”
Chappell went on to explain why he believed Kraft deserved this year’s class over Belichick.
“Kraft’s role in building the Patriots’ dynasty beginning in 1994 AND his undeniable role in helping negotiate the end of a 100-game day’s work stoppage in 2011 — while his wife was seriously ill — have resulted in long-term labor peace,” Chappell wrote. “He has also been involved behind the scenes in bolstering the NFL’s ever-increasing television revenue.”
It was reported that Belichick’s involvement with the Patriots during the infamous Spygate and Deflategate scandals affected him, who was not a first-ballot Hall of Famer.
For Chappell, Spygate was involved in his decision.
Then-New England Patriots head coach Bill Belichick during the second half of an NFL football game against the New Orleans Saints, Sunday, Oct. 8, 2023, in Foxborough, Massachusetts. (AP Photo/Michael Dwyer, File)
“There is no way to erase the stain of Spygate from his bio,” he wrote. “This was not alleged conduct. The NFL fined Belichick $500,000 — the maximum allowed — along with docking the Patriots $250,000 and a first-round draft pick for illegally videotaping New York Jets signals in 2007.”
Chappell believes Belichick will be a Hall of Famer, but he was left with a tough choice in his eyes.
“This year’s decision in no way insinuates that Belichick is not Hall of Fame worthy,” Chappell wrote. “Of course he is. I believe he’ll make it next year. Would that mean his gold jacket isn’t as cool if he’d been selected in his first year of eligibility? Of course not.”
To Chappell’s last point, others have commented differently, saying the integrity of the Hall of Fame has been diminished because Belichick, who owns the second-most wins by a head coach all-time with six Super Bowls and two while a coordinator with the New York Giants, has a first-ballot resume.
Former NFL quarterback and current ESPN analyst Dan Orlovsky even went so far as to say the Hall of Fame should correct its decision.
New England Patriots head coach Bill Belichick announces his retirement from the team during a news conference at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Massachusetts on January 11, 2024. (JOSEPH PREZIOSO/AFP)
“There’s not one person that has come out that has made Coach Belichick a legitimate reason not to be a first-ballot Hall of Famer,” Orlosky said on ESPN’s “First Take” Thursday, per Awful Announcing. “Obviously, this is a big deal. Unless somebody does it, why can’t the Hall of Fame take a step back and say, ‘You know what? We reassessed. Everybody makes a lot of good points. The process is a flawed process. Let’s make sure we do this the right way.’ Because the right thing is to have him as a Hall of Famer on the first ballot. I understand that everybody is in this rebellion like, ‘No, you can’t go back. The vote.’ Why not? Why can’t the Hall of Fame do the right thing and realize the egregious mistake that has been made.”
Others like Tom Brady, Patrick Mahomes, JJ Watt and Kraft, who called Belichick “the greatest coach of all time,” shared their displeasure with what happened.
