Patriots legend addresses uncertain future of Bill Belichick

New England Patriots icon, three-time Super Bowl champion and current NFL analyst Devin McCourty indicated the report NFL Network's Ian Rapoport offered this past weekend that claimed team owner Robert Kraft has not yet made a final decision about the future of head coach Bill Belichick may be accurate. 

"I’m very interested to see," McCourty said about the Belichick situation during an appearance on the FanDuelTV "Up & Adams" program, per Lauren Campbell of MassLive. "I think, obviously, the team is still playing hard for Bill. So I think that’s something that the Krafts are gonna have to think about."

Specifically, McCourty mentioned how the 3-11 Patriots defeated the Pittsburgh Steelers on Dec. 7 and then played "tough" in this past Sunday's 27-17 loss to the Kansas City Chiefs. McCourty added that he can see Belichick "maybe contending for a Super Bowl next year" with a different club because the 71-year-old can still "have that impact" on an organization. 

Most recently, Belichick has been linked with advertised contenders such as the Los Angeles Chargers and Dallas Cowboys. It's assumed the six-time Super Bowl champion head coach would only complete a move to a team that already has an established quarterback atop the depth chart. 

"I think no matter what, if he’s not in New England, if he can find a situation where the quarterback position is kind of set in stone, he can handle a lot of different things and get that going," McCourty explained about Belichick's mindset.

Belichick reportedly is under contract through next season, meaning a different team would have to trade for his services unless he finds a way to force Kraft into firing one of the franchise's most legendary figures. One thing that seems clear is that former and current players believe Belichick can still guide a club to a title even though his Patriots are about to miss the playoffs for a third time across four years.