Would Belichick retire when Brady goes?
If he can’t come up with a decent QB would he want to struggle with a so-so one?

This is a very good post, thank you. I kept thinking about the Landry-Cowboys when Chase was talking about best winning percentages over 17-year periods in NFL history. I was surprised those Cowboys weren’t on there, especially if they made 12 out of 17, and with 4 different QB’s! I think this is actually more impressive than what the Patriots have done. In one season without Tom Brady (Matt Cassel), they didn’t even make the playoffs.

So yes, the Patriots still have something to prove if they want to be the definitive best dynasty ever – they must win, IMO, without Brady to be on par with those Cowboys with 12/17 and something like 20-straight winning seasons. They don’t need to necessarily win a SB without TB12, because that’s their obvious superiority over those ’66-’82 Cowboys: 8 SB appearances vs. 5 for Cowboys. But I think we need to see at least another AFCCG. Look at Belichick in the small sample-size without Brady – both Cleveland and the 2008 season – just not the same level of success. It’s a lot easier with the GOAT running your team.

Oh also, this is good fuel for my long held belief than Tom Landry is in fact the greatest head coach in NFL history. No one did more with completely different rosters, over entirely different eras of football. Lombardi basically had his “core”, including Bart Starr, throughout his entire dynasty. I don’t see how that tops Landry, despite the two very close victories in NFL championships they had over Landry and ‘Boys.