The New England Patriots look to hoist a seventh Lombardi Trophy this weekend, but can’t catch a break when it comes to Canton, Ohio.
For a second week in a row, a major figure in the Patriots dynasty has been snubbed by the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Former Patriots head coach Bill Belichick didn’t make the cut for the 2026 finalists last week, and now, neither will Patriots owner Robert Kraft.
ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported on Tuesday that Kraft wasn’t selected. The decision has now raised scrutiny over the Hall of Fame voting process.
“What matters to me is we win Sunday,” Kraft told CNBC on Tuesday. “I can’t speak on issues where other people are voting or doing things.”
Kraft and Belichick made the five-person finalist pool, separate from modern-era candidates, for Hall of Fame voting. The other three in the pool were former players Ken Anderson, L.C. Greenwood, and Roger Craig.
A minimum of three candidates and a maximum of five can be chosen, requiring 40 votes among the 50-person selection committee. If no one reaches 40 votes, the top candidate would get inducted.
Kraft and Belichick built the Patriots dynasty that dominated the 2000s and 2010s with nine Super Bowl appearances and six championships. Unlike Belichick, Kraft, 84, has been eligible for the Hall of Fame since 2013, when he was first nominated. Kraft was a semifinalist last year.
NFL owners have made it before under the contributor category. That list includes Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones and other previous owners: Dan Rooney with the Pittsburgh Steelers, Eddie DeBartolo with the San Francisco 49ers, Ralph Wilson with the Buffalo Bills, and Pat Bowlen with the Denver Broncos.
Jones was inducted in 2017 among the five owners who joined the hall since 2000. While Jones had a Super Bowl dynasty with the Cowboys in the 1990s, the franchise hasn’t won since—a three-decade drought.
Kraft bought the Patriots in 1994 from previous owner James Orthwein when the team was mired in problems on and off the field. Kraft had already purchased the Patriots’ old stadium, Sullivan Stadium, via bankruptcy proceedings, and the franchise only had 225 wins and one Super Bowl appearance at that point in team history.
Under Kraft, the Patriots have 374 wins and six championships thus far. He had Sullivan Stadium, renamed Foxboro Stadium, demolished and built the 64,628-seat Gillette Stadium. Kraft has more Super Bowl appearances than any owner, with 11 come Sunday.
Belichick likewise had an impressive resume, with a 302–165 career mark overall and six championships in New England, and he won two Super Bowls as an assistant coach with the New York Giants. That said, speculation arose when Belichick didn’t get in last week with Kraft also in the running.
“Whatever perceptions may exist about any personal differences between Bill and me, I strongly believe Bill Belichick’s record and body of work speak for themselves,” Kraft said in a statement last week. “As head coach of the New England Patriots for more than two decades, he set the standard for on-field excellence, preparation, and sustained success in the free agency and salary cap era of the National Football League. He is the greatest coach of all time, and he unequivocally deserves to be a unanimous first-ballot Pro Football Hall of Famer.”
NFL commissioner Roger Goodell clarified the issue on Monday before the Super Bowl. The league and the Hall of Fame are separate entities.
“We are not involved in it,” Goodell told the media on Monday. “Bill Belichick’s record goes without saying, same with the Patriots and Robert Kraft, who is also a candidate. They are spectacular. They have contributed so much to this game, and I believe they will be Hall of Famers.”
