Patriots' Bill Belichick responds to questions about uncertain future

Anybody believing that New England Patriots head coach Bill Belichick would significantly address his uncertain future ahead of this coming Sunday's regular-season finale against the 6-10 New York Jets was kidding himself. 

"I’m focused on getting ready for the Jets," Belichick responded to a question regarding the subject during a Monday morning conference call with media members, as shared by Patriots beat reporter Zack Cox of NESN and Karen Guregian of MassLive. "We haven’t played them in a long time. Been a whole season. So working on the Jets here and getting ready to go."

The Patriots defeated the Jets 15-10 in Week 3 back in September. 

While it's widely believed Patriots owner Robert Kraft will soon announce "a mutual parting of the ways" that's truly a firing of Belichick, Albert Breer of Sports Illustrated noted that New England players showed in Sunday's 27-21 loss to the Buffalo Bills that they have not "quit" on the six-time Super Bowl champion head coach despite the club's 4-12 record. 

Belichick was asked Monday if such a fight from those inside the locker room means anything to him amid a lost season. 

"Yeah, I’ve talked about that quite a bit," Belichick answered. "I really don’t have anything to add." 

Belichick turns 72 years old in April, is reportedly under contract through next season and has repeatedly been linked in rumors with numerous franchises. One reporter asked Monday morning if Belichick had fully reflected on the 24 campaigns he's spent with the Patriots ahead of what could become a historic Sunday afternoon. 

"I’ll deal with that some other time," Belichick somewhat predictably said. "Right now it’s trying to get ready for the Jets, finishing up the Buffalo game. I’m going to continue to coach the team and try to help the players get the team to play better."

Belichick's Patriots will miss the playoffs for a third time in four years, and he hasn't yet proven he can win on a consistent basis without having Tom Brady as his quarterback. Outsiders will continue to speculate about Belichick's status through the first week of 2024, but he did all he could Monday to make it known he's concentrating only on defeating the Jets at Gillette Stadium in Week 18.