The Pro Football Hall of Fame is one of the most prestigious and respected institutions of its kind in the world. However, their credibility took a huge hit when the greatest coach of all-time, Bill Belichick, was snubbed of a first-ballot induction into the Hall of Fame.
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Reports suggest it was one of Belichick’s old rivals, 83-year-old Bill Polian, who was campaigning against Belichick during the voting process. Polian denies doing this, but he also couldn’t even remember with certainty whether he had voted for Belichick or not. Possibly campaigning against an old rival is already unacceptable, but forgetting your HOF ballot should result in the removal of your voting credentials.
Everyone from Tom Brady to Peter King has come out in support of Belichick in this situation. There’s simply no way a guy with six Super Bowls as a head coach—more than any other coach by far—should have to wait a year to get in. Polian’s supposed argument was that Belichick should do a year of “penance” for the old Spygate scandal. And while that was a serious misstep by Belichick, future Hall of Famer Jason Kelce thinks it’s been blown way out of proportion.
“If you are doing signals out in the open so that the other team can see them, and you do it enough and repeatedly that they can then steal it from you. That’s your fault,” Kelce argued during his appearance on 94 WIP. “If you are doing signals so bad that the other team can steal them, that’s your fault.”
As the other people on the podcast pointed out, Belichick did a lot more than that. He was filming the practices of his opponents. But Kelce pointed out that he’s heard stories of other coaches using similar tactics.
“I have heard multiple stories of coaches going into other team’s hotel rooms to get game plans,” Kelce said.
Jason Kelce DEFENDS Bill Belichick.
Belichick was controversially snubbed as a first ballot Hall Of Famer, with Spygate being considered a valid reason to not give the 8-time Super Bowl champion a HOF vote.
Kelce downplayed Spygate: "I am probably going to be in the minority… pic.twitter.com/uZtuXz0CJ9
— SPORTSRADIO 94WIP (@SportsRadioWIP) January 29, 2026
The Spygate scandal was certainly a black mark on Belichick’s legacy, but not one that should keep him out of the Hall of Fame. He won three more Super Bowls after he was punished for that scandal. That’s more than any other coach except Chuck Noll. And it’s just half of Belichick’s haul.
And from the way Kelce and other players and coaches have always downplayed this particular scandal, the feeling is that Belichick wasn’t the only one using these tactics. He was the only one who got caught.
If the Pro Football Hall of Fame wants to maintain its shine of prestige, they either have to find a way to make this right or ensure it never happens again by removing senile old men that are holding grudges from the voting body.
