Bill Polian clarifies his Bill Belichick Hall of Fame vote as questions swirl

Bill Polian continued to push back on the narrative that he played a role in Bill Belichick not becoming a first-ballot Hall of Famer. 

The former football executive, who served as general manager for the Bills and Colts, was specifically named in an ESPN report on Tuesday as having told other voters that the six-time Super Bowl-winning head coach should “wait a year” to get into the Pro Football Hall of Fame as some sort of penance for the 2007 Spygate scandal. 

Belichick did not receive the necessary votes to be included in the Pro Football Hall of Fame class of 2026.

Polian has denied having a role in that decision in multiple interviews and said he voted for Belichick, though that was a claim he seemed to slightly backtrack on Tuesday night.

But he seemed sure of his yes vote on Wednesday during an interview on SiriusXM NFL Radio. 

Head coach Bill Belichick of the New England Patriots looks on during the second half against the Kansas City Chiefs at Gillette Stadium on December 17, 2023 in Foxborough, Massachusetts. Getty Images

“I voted for Coach Belichick in the Hall of Fame selection meeting,” Polian said, reading from a prepared statement. “The Pro Football Hall of Fame has confirmed that fact through the auditors of the selection process. Again, I’ll state that I never said that I believed that Coach Belichick should ‘wait a year’ for enshrinement. This has been confirmed by the Pro Football Hall of Fame, numerous selectors who were in the room and my vote for Coach Belichick. As a Hall of Fame member and selector, I realize the import of what we do. I’ve always tried as a selector to make these difficult choices with the utmost objectivity. I’ve said on Sirius XM Radio and numerous other media outlets that I believe Coach Belichick to be a first-ballot Hall of Famer. My vote confirms that.”

The initial ESPN report, which included the claims about Polian, has created plenty of animosity toward the ex-NFL general manager, with Ringer founder Bill Simmons even labeling him a “petty, whiny, not-honest, hypocritical, self-serving, score-settling d–khead.”

And Simmons hasn’t been alone in questioning Polian’s account.

That chorus grew even louder after Polian told ESPN on Tuesday night that he was 95 percent sure that he voted for Belichick. 

During the SiriusXM interview, Polian explained that because the interview with the Worldwide Leader had taken place late Tuesday night, he had no way to confirm “to 100 percent certainty” that he had cast a vote for the former Patriots head coach. 

“I used the term 95 percent because I could have easily said very certain. Perhaps I should have said very certain, but I did not have confirmation late last night when I talked to the author,” he said. “And I didn’t want to make an absolutely unequivocal statement without having it be confirmed. Simple as that.” 

Hall of Fame general manager Bill Polian is introduced prior to the Pro Football Hall of Fame Enshrinement on August 6, 2022 in Canton, Ohio. Diamond Images/Getty Images

Polian also, again, denied he had any personal vendetta against Belichick dating back to their time as adversaries in the AFC. 

“There isn’t anything there. We served together in close physical proximity on the selection committee for the centennial team,” he continued. “We’ve discussed things together. I have the utmost respect for him as a football coach.

“The fact that they got the better of us so many times has no bearing on it. He’s a great football coach.”

Belichick fell short of the 40 needed votes to be inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame, shocking everyone across the sports world. 

Because voters’ ballots are not made public, it is not possible to know the identities of those who did not give Belichick their votes.

One voter, the Kansas City Star’s Vahe Gregorian, came forward and explained why he did not vote for Belichick.