Despite achieving one of the NFL's greatest dynasties together over the course of 24 years in New England, Bill Belichick and Robert Kraft are at ends with each other.
Kraft said that hiring Belichick was his best move as the Patriots' owner, but also "a big risk," during an appearance on the "Dudes on Dudes" podcast cohosted by Rob Gronkowski and Julian Edelman at fanatics fest in June.
"Getting Bill Belichick to come to the Patriots," said Kraft. "I gave up a No. 1 draft pick (for a) coach who had only won a little over 40 percent of his games in 1999. It was a big risk and I got hammered in the Boston media, but I think we did OK."
Belichick took issue with Kraft's statement, flipping the billionaire businessman's wording back on him, saying he was the one who took "a big risk."
"As I told Robert multiple times through the years, I took a big risk by taking the New England Patriots head coaching job," Belichick said in a statement to ESPN. "I already had an opportunity to be the head coach of the New York Jets, but the ownership situation was unstable."
Regardless of who the risk fell on, all ended well for the Patriots as they won six Super Bowls over the course of Belichick's tenure.
The NFL-record six-time Super Bowl champion coach led the Patriots from 1999 until his firing in 2023.
4:16