Patriots lose to Jets in potential Belichick’s final game

Coach Bill Belichick’s possible last game with the New England Patriots was one for the record books — in a way he doesn’t want to remember.

The Patriots lost 17-3 to the Jets on Sunday at Gillette Stadium, ending New York’s 15-game losing skid against New England. The Patriots recorded 119 yards of offense, marking the fewest of the Belichick era. The team’s previous low was 149 against the Miami Dolphins on October 7, 2001.

Rumors are swirling — as has been the case for much of the fall — that Belichick and the Patriots could part ways at the end of the season. Answers about the future of the franchise are expected to come after a conversation with owners Robert and Jonathan Kraft and Belichick shortly after Sunday’s game.

Asked about his future postgame, Belichick said he would only talk about Sunday’s game.

“Disappointed in the way the game ended,” Belichick said when asked if he thinks he will be back with the Patriots. Belichick added that he “still enjoys coaching.”

The team’s troublesome offense was swapped between quarterbacks Mac Jones and Bailey Zappe this fall before settling on Zappe as the starter in late November. He went 12 of 30 with 88 yards, no touchdowns and two interceptions in the fourth quarter against a Jets team that has had a dramatic season full of quarterback issues.

The Jets’ Trevor Siemian — starting ahead of Zach Wilson, who was moved to injured reserve Saturday with a concussion — also failed to throw a touchdown. He finished 8 of 20 with 70 throwing yards.

With Sunday’s loss, the Patriots finished the season at 4-13 and are last in the AFC East for the first time since 2000, Belichick’s first year on the job.

Belichick is one of the most successful coaches in NFL history. He built a dynasty with quarterback Tom Brady, winning nine AFC championships and six Super Bowls (2001, 2003, 2004, 2014, 2016 and 2018). Under Belichick, the franchise has posted a winning record in 20 of his 24 seasons.

However, the relationship between Brady and Belichick was severed by the end of the 2019 season and Brady signed with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in free agency. The following season, Brady led the Bucs to a Super Bowl title, the seventh of his storied career.

Meanwhile, over the past four years, the Patriots tried quarterbacks Cam Newton, Jones and Zappe as their offense slowly became one of the worst in the league.

After perhaps the best 20-year streak in league history, the Patriots haven’t won a playoff game since the 2018 Super Bowl and have gone 30-37 since Brady’s departure.

Bill Belichick may leave the field for the last time as head coach of the Patriots.

In typical Belichick fashion, there was no added emotion, no wave to the fans, no big exit. pic.twitter.com/0uMYlj7IQL

— Chad Graff (@ChadGraff) January 7, 2024

NFL coaching changes live updates: fired coaches, on the hot seat, latest Belichick news, rumors and job candidates

What’s next for Belichick?

All eyes are on Belichick. He brought more success to one franchise than any coach ever. But the Patriots just had their worst season since 1992.

They have had a losing record in three of the four years since Brady left, leaving Belichick’s future very much up in the air. He is expected to meet with the Krafts on Monday to discuss their way forward, but at this point a “mutual parting” is entirely possible – if not likely. Belichick and Robert Kraft have had their differences for years, but now the success that softened the rough spots has dried up.

The Patriots run their franchise very differently than any other, an insular organization where collaboration is often discouraged in favor of whatever path Belichick seems suitable. What he has chosen in recent years has not worked. That could lead the Krafts to demand change and a more modern approach to the organizational structure. News about Belichick’s future could come as early as Monday. – Chad Graff, Patriots staff writer

What’s next for the Patriots?

It was a fitting end to the season for the Patriots offense, which finishes with the fewest points scored of any team. Regardless of who the coach is, the Patriots need a major overhaul on that side of the ball, including (but not limited to) a new quarterback, several new wide receivers and at least one new offensive tackle. – Graf

The Jets finally ended their 15 straight game skid, losing to the Patriots and Belichick. The game was meaningless in the grand scheme of things — these were two bad teams playing a game that didn’t matter at the end of disappointing seasons for both — but the Jets finally got this monkey off their back. They did it on the back of Breece Hall.

The Jets star set a career-high with 37 carries for 178 yards and he surpassed 1,500 total yards for the season with his performance, the first Jets to do so since Thomas Jones in 2008. Most impressively, Hall did it . in his first year after ACL surgery. Hall clinched the victory with a 50-yard touchdown run in the fourth quarter.

Now the Jets enter the offseason with a lot of questions, but Hall isn’t one of them. Expect the Jets to build their offense around his talents as a runner and pass-catcher, and — if he stays healthy — should have a shot at 2,000 yards with Aaron Rodgers next year. – Zack Rosenblatt, Jets staff writer

NFL Playoff Bracket, Scenarios, Projected Matchups & Live Seeding Updates: Full Sunday Schedule

Required reading

(Photo: Winslow Townson/Getty Images)