When the Pro Football Hall of Fame class of 2026 is announced next week, Bill Belichick will not be among the upcoming inductees.
Per an ESPN report, Belichick did not receive the votes necessary to make the Hall of Fame. Despite winning six Super Bowls as a head coach, winning the second-most games by a coach in NFL history and becoming arguably the greatest coach the sport has ever seen, Belichick will not make the Hall of Fame on his first ballot.
The vote has left many stunned and feeling the decision is indefensible, but while shocking, Belichick is far from the first legendary coach to be snubbed by the Hall of Fame on first ballot. In fact, only three coaches have made the Pro Football Hall of Fame on first ballot. Here’s a look at other coaches that were also snubbed by the Hall on first ballot.
Which NFL coaches have made the Hall of Fame on first ballot?
Don Shula, Chuck Noll and Tom Landry are the only coaches to make the Hall of Fame on first ballot, and are all deserving of that honor.
The winningest coach in NFL history, Shula was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1997 shortly. A two-time Super Bowl champion and NFL champion, Shula was a head coach with the Colts and Dolphins from 1963-1995 and is the only coach to go undefeated and win the Super Bowl in the same season.
Chuck Noll also made the Hall of Fame on first ballot in 1993 after leading the Steelers to four Super Bowl victories in the 1970s. Tom Landry became the first to do so in 1990 after his 29-year tenure with the Cowboys produced 20 straight winning seasons and two Super Bowl titles.
Notably, championship-winning coaches George Halas and Curly Lambeau did not make the Hall of Fame on first ballot because the Hall of Fame didn’t exist until 1963. Both were inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame’s inaugural class in 1963.
Which NFL coaches have been snubbed from the Hall of Fame on first ballot?
Outside of Belichick, the most prominent coaches not to make the Hall of Fame on first ballot are Vince Lombardi (class of 1971), Paul Brown (1967), Bill Walsh (1993) and Jimmy Johnson (2020). All three were multi-time champions, architects of a dynasty and some of the most influential coaches in the history of the NFL.
Though Lombardi is not technically a first-ballot Hall of Famer, he was inducted into Canton within a year of his death from cancer. Lombardi coached Washington through the 1969 season and died shortly before the start of the 1970 season.
Despite leading Washington to three Super Bowl wins, Joe Gibbs was also not elected on first ballot. Neither was Belichick’s mentor Bill Parcells, who had to wait until 2013 to receive his bust despite winning two Super Bowls.
Super Bowl-winning coaches Hank Stram and John Madden not only weren’t elected into the Hall of Fame on first ballot, they had to wait decades until they were inducted. Stram was a three-time AFL and Super Bowl IV champion, but was not inducted until 2003. Though Madden led the Raiders to a Super Bowl XI victory and holds the NFL’s highest winning percentage among coaches that coached at least 100 games, he had to wait until 2006 for his gold jacket.
Weeb Ewbank, Dick Vermeil, Tony Dungy, Bill Cowher and Tom Flores were among the other Super Bowl-winning coaches that had to wait before they made the Hall of Fame. Mike Shanahan, Tom Coughlin, Mike Holmgren and George Seifert are all Super Bowl-winning coaches that have yet to make the Hall of Fame at all.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Bill Belichick and the Most Prominent NFL Coaches Snubbed By Hall of Fame on First Ballot.
