Now that Bill Belichick has been hired at the University of North Carolina, the door is now officially open for the six-time Super Bowl champion to enter the Pro Football Hall of Fame as soon as 2026.
The 72-year-old Belichick is line to become the first coach in NFL history to benefit from a new policy at the Pro Football Hall of Fame that was just implemented this year.
Under the new rule, which was approved in August, former NFL coaches only have a waiting period of one season before they're eligible for induction. Under the previous rule, NFL coaches had to wait five years after their final season before they were eligible, which means Belichick wouldn't have been eligible for the Hall of Fame until 2029, but under the new rule, he can now be inducted as soon as 2026.
Belichick spent 23 years as the coach of the New England Patriots, but he was fired after a 2023 season that saw New England go 4-13. Belichick was a finalist for the Atlanta Falcons coach job this year, but that ended up going to Raheem Morris. With zero head coaching offers heading into the 2024 season, Belichick decided to sit out the year and work in the media.
Since NFL coaches now only have a one year waiting period, Belichick will become officially eligible for the Hall of Fame's Class of 2026 after the 2024 season is complete. If Belichick had landed an NFL job for the 2025 season, then his clock would have reset and he would have had to wait another year before becoming eligible. However, since he's coaching at the college level, that doesn't impact his eligibility, which is why he could be inducted as soon as 2026.
The coaching nominees for the Class of 2026 will be named at some point in the fall of 2025. Mike Holmgren, who coached both the Packers (1992-98) and Seahawks (1999-2008), is the coaching finalist for 2025.
If Belichick does get inducted in 2026, he'd get in the Hall of Fame before Tom Brady, who isn't eligible until 2028. Drew Brees, Larry Fitzgerald and Philip Rivers are some of the players who will be eligible for the first time in 2026.
Once the nomination process starts for the class of 2026, it feels like a lock that Belichick will get inducted in his first year. He has the most Super Bowl wins of any coach in NFL history (6) and he has the second-most wins (333) of any coach in NFL history, trailing only Don Shula, who finished with 347.
Belichick started his head coaching career with the Cleveland Browns in 1991 and he lasted with the team for five seasons before Art Modell dumped him in 1995 prior to moving the team to Baltimore. Belichick then got hired by the Patriots in 2000 and the rest was history.