Bill Belichick and the New England Patriots are having their worst season since Belichick took over as head coach. They are 2-10 heading into Week 14, marking just the second time in the Belichick era that the Patriots have lost double-digit games.
Before his time with New England, Belichick spent time in a couple of different spots — one of them being the New York Jets. How long did he coach them?
How Long Was Bill Belichick the Head Coach of the New York Jets?
Belichick started his NFL coaching career back in 1975 when he spent the season as a special assistant with the Baltimore Colts. He didn’t become a position coach until 1977 when he joined the Detroit Lions. He joined seven different franchises before becoming a head coach.
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The door opened to become a head coach in 1991 when he joined the Cleveland Browns after being the New York Giants’ defensive coordinator for five seasons. He stayed with the Browns until 1995. During his time in Cleveland, he compiled a 36-44 record and led the team to the playoffs in 1994.
Belichick was fired from Cleveland just a week after the team announced a move to Baltimore. His most controversial move as the Browns’ head coach was cutting QB Bernie Kosar midway through the 1993 season. The signal-caller was signed by the Dallas Cowboys days later and won Super Bowl XXVIII as a backup.
Following his firing in Cleveland, Belichick joined the Patriots for just one season as assistant head coach and defensive backs coach for the 1996 season. There, he served under Bill Parcells.
After his single season with New England, Belichick finally joined the Jets. He had two stints as the head coach of the Jets but never coached a game. First, he was hired as the Jets head coach in what was essentially an interim role in 1997 while the Jets and Patriots negotiated compensation to release Parcells from his contract with the Patriots.
Once negotiations were completed, Belichick became the Jets’ assistant head coach and defensive coordinator, once again to Parcells. A few years later, following the 1999 season, Parcells stepped down and let Belichick succeed him.
18 years ago today…
Bill Belichick resigns after 24 hours as Jets coach. He joined the @Patriots three weeks later and the rest is #NFLHistory. pic.twitter.com/9uunlMNYtv
— NFL Legacy (@NFLLegacy) January 4, 2018
Ultimately, though, Belichick did not want to be the Jets head coach. The day his hiring was publicized, he announced his resignation. He was then named New England’s 12th full-time head coach after the franchise had fired Pete Carroll, but the league stepped in regarding Belichick’s duty to his active contract and forced New England to compensate New York for the move. In total, Belichick spent three years with the Jets from 1997 to 1999.
Belichick went on to coach 23 seasons and counting with the Patriots, winning six Super Bowls with QB Tom Brady. Thanks to his success in New England, Belichick has compiled a 300-161 regular season coaching record and a 31-13 postseason record.
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