Bill Belichick set to talk with Patriots media Monday as Robert Kraft meeting looms

It’s business as usual for Bill Belichick and the Patriots — at least for now. Right down to his normal day after games Zoom call with the media. Belichick is scheduled to have his regular virtual availability on Monday despite intense speculation that the longtime Patriots head coach and the organization are headed for a split.

Belichick refused to answer questions about his future with the team and confirmed he’d be sitting down with Patriots owner Robert Kraft following Sunday’s season finale loss to the Jets. “As far as the future goes, I’ll sit down with Robert as I do every year at some point at the end of the season and we’ll talk about things as we always do,” Belichick said, according to the Boston Herald .

“I’m sure that’ll happen. But that’s really about all I have to say about that right now because there’s nothing else to talk about.” Earlier in the week, ESPN had reported that Belichick and Kraft were going to meet on Monday to wrap up the season, but it certainly seemed to catch people’s attention when reporters covering the Patriots were informed that Belichick would be speaking to the media at 7:30 a.m.

Evan Lazar of Patriots.com posted on X that Belichick speaking so early was “nothing out of the ordinary.” Belichick has been on the hot seat for some time now as the Patriots’ season went south this season and rumors started to heat up in November when reports of the longtime head coach and the Patriots separating began surfacing.

Belichick dodged numerous questions about his future following the loss to the Jets, New England’s first to their AFC East rival since 2015. “Yeah, so I just finished the game here with the Jets. Put everything I had into it. Disappointed in the results,” Belichick replied at one point. But the curiosity surrounding Belichick’s job status will only intensify now that the season is over.

The Monday following the end of the regular season is notoriously known as “Black Monday” due to it usually being a day when underperforming coaches are fired. Many are expecting Belichick’s name to be among the casualties during this year’s version. While Belichick’s time in New England may very well be coming to a close, there are several teams reportedly interested in his services.

Both the Raiders and Commanders are interested in Belichick coaching their teams, The Athletic reported on Saturday. The six time Super Bowl winning coach doesn’t sound like he’s interested in retirement. “No, I mean, I enjoy coaching,” Belichick said when asked if this season had drained him a bit on coaching.

“I still — I like coaching the team. I like preparing the team, game planning, coaching on Sundays. But the results weren’t good and none of us are happy with those.” The Patriots finished with a 4 13 record this season and they had been eliminated from postseason contention back in Week 14, the earliest since 2000 that has happened for New England, according to CBS Boston..