Bill Belichick, Robert Kraft among five Pro Football Hall of Fame finalists from Blue-Ribbon Committees

Former New England Patriots coach Bill Belichick and current Patriots owner Robert Kraft are among five finalists for the Pro Football Hall of Fame class of 2026 via the Blue-Ribbon Committees' nominations. The Blue-Ribbon Committees, which select candidates across the "Coach," "Contributor" and "Seniors" categories, also selected former players Roger Craig, L.C. Greenwood and Ken Anderson as finalists.

Belichick, now coach at North Carolina, is in his first year of eligibility for the Hall of Fame. His football credentials are undeniable. Across 29 years as a head coach -- five with the Cleveland Browns, 24 with the Patriots -- he won 302 regular-season games (third-most ever), 31 playoff games (most ever) and six Super Bowls (most ever).

All of those playoff and Super Bowl wins came with Kraft as the team's owner, a position he has held since 1994. Kraft hired Belichick back in 2000 in a stunning turn of events. The New York Jets initially hired Belichick (he was New York's defensive coordinator at the time), but at the press conference announcing the hiring, he announced he was leaving the team. It was an immediate boon for New England, which became a powerhouse for the next two decades under Kraft, Belichick and Tom Brady.

After Brady's departure, however, New England began to struggle, and in early 2024, Belichick and the Patriots parted ways. It at first seemed like an amicable split, but the relationship has seemingly been rocky ever since. Kraft blamed Belichick for the Patriots' Super Bowl LII loss, and Kraft and Belichick both called partnering in the first place a "big risk." On the other hand, Kraft said shortly before this season that he plans to build a statue for Belichick when his coaching career ends.

Now, ironically, they could be reunited again. Despite his unparalleled success as an owner, Kraft has been frozen out of the Hall of Fame for more than a dozen years, something some attribute to the Patriots' "Spygate" cheating scandal. Other voters have mentioned "Deflategate" as well as dismissed charges after Kraft's two visits to a Jupiter, Florida, massage parlor. Some have wondered whether "Spygate" would impact Belichick's candidacy.

Finalists must receive 80% of the vote from the full Selection Committee in order to make the Hall of Fame. Members can only vote for three of the five Blue-Ribbon Committees finalists, and only three of the five can make the Hall of Fame. The voting will occur in early 2026, and results will be revealed during Super Bowl LX week.