Retired NFL player Rob Gronkowski told Newsmax on Friday there is no doubt that Bill Belichick should have been a first-ballot Pro Football Hall of Famer, arguing that "it doesn't matter if he wasn't nice to a reporter" and that "Spygate" and other issues involving the coach had are "just excuses" compared with Belichick's accomplishments.
On "Ed Henry The Big Take," Gronkowski, a former New England Patriots and Tampa Bay Buccaneers tight end, made the case for Belichick's immediate induction.
The host asked about backlash over Belichick not being inducted into the Hall of Fame on his first ballot, citing complaints and past controversies such as Spygate.
Spygate was the 2007 scandal in which the Patriots were fined $500,000 and lost their 2008 first-round draft pick for illegally videotaping opposing coaches' signals.
"Take all that away," Gronkowski responded, because, in his view, "it doesn't matter if he wasn't nice to a reporter, you know, Spygate, all that other stuff that's going on."
He dismissed such reasons as "just excuses," and added that "you've got to look at the resume."
Gronkowski argued that Belichick "has eight Super Bowl championships, two as the defensive coordinator with the New York Giants back in the day, and then six with New England, three in the first decade of the dynasty, and then another three Super Bowl wins in the second, you know, era of the dynasty.
"I mean, this guy has the resume, second-most wins of all time in the regular season, first-most wins of all time in the playoffs."
"And on top of that, that isn't in his resume, how many lives he has touched, you know, with former players and coaches as well, and how many opportunities he has given and how much great information that he has shared about the game of football, not just the game of football, but about life as well," he added.
The Pro Football Hall of Fame selection committee consists of 50 voters who require an 80% affirmative vote to elect modern-era players and coaches.
Belichick's NFL coaching record of 333-178, second in career wins only to Don Shula, made him widely seen as a first-ballot Hall of Fame choice.
While specific individual voting totals are generally not disclosed publicly (only winners are revealed), the process involves reducing 15 finalists to 10, then seven, and finally five.
That said, ESPN reported that Belichick did not receive the necessary 40 votes from the 50-person panel in his first year of eligibility.
Pro Football Hall of Fame voter Armando Salguero said the snub of Belichick was due to only one issue.
"I'll tell you right now: The reason that Bill Belichick is not in the Hall of Fame as a first ballot Hall of Famer is Spygate. Period. Next," Salguero said.
"Coach Belichick 100% got snubbed," Gronkowski said, adding, "He's a 100% going to be in the Pro Football Hall of Fame eventually, but he should have been a first ballot."
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Jim Thomas ✉
Jim Thomas is a writer based in Indiana. He holds a bachelor's degree in Political Science, a law degree from U.I.C. Law School, and has practiced law for more than 20 years.
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