With Tom Brady leaving town as a free agent after two successful decades in New England, a cloud of uncertainty hangs over the Patriots as they look towards next season. Despite those concerns, though, Patriots head coach Bill Belichick sits as the favourite on the odds to win NFL Coach of the Year honours at +650 at sportsbooks monitored by OddsShark.com.
Winner of the Coach of the Year award three times so far during his career, Belichick faces a massive challenge to add to his stacked trophy case next season. With Brady gone, unproven Jarrett Stidham is currently penciled in as the Patriots’ starting pivot. And in addition to coming away from the 2020 NFL Draft without a quarterback, New England also failed to make any upgrades to its receiving corps, which is currently led by aging veteran Julian Edelman.
Further complicating matters for Belichick and the Patriots is the steady emergence of the Buffalo Bills. Fresh off a 10-win campaign, the Bills made several upgrades over the offseason, most notably the addition of star receiver Stefon Diggs and veteran cornerback Josh Norman. Buffalo also enjoyed a successful draft, highlighted by their second-round selection of defensive end AJ Epenesa, whose arrival further bolsters one of the best defences in the NFL.
However, the Bills’ bold moves and high expectations for the coming season have done little to boost Sean McDermott’s Coach of the Year odds, which continue to lag at +1800.
Brady’s new coach, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers’ Bruce Arians, sits second to Belichick on the Coach of the Year odds at +1200 at sports betting sites. San Francisco’s Kyle Shanahan joins Miami’s Brian Flores and Cleveland’s Kevin Stefanski at +1600, while Arizona’s Kliff Kingsbury sits alongside McDermott at +1800 on those NFL odds.
The signing of Brady, acquisition of veteran tight end Rob Gronkowski in a trade with New England, and arrival of first-round draft pick Tristan Wirfs, provide Arians with significant gridiron upgrades. However, Arians faces an uphill battle in his bid to claim a third career NFL Coach of the Year award. Winners of just seven games in 2019, the Buccaneers have not posted a playoff game victory since Super Bowl 38, and they failed to reach the playoffs in each of the past 12 seasons.
Shanahan also faces high expectations after leading the Niners to their first Super Bowl berth in seven years, while Kingsbury presents intriguing value in his role at the helm of a rapidly improving Cardinals team.
