3 external and 2 internal Belichick replacements Patriots fans would love, a few they'd hate

Bill Belichick is actually out as New England Patriots head coach. As impossible as it is to believe, the longest-running NFL dynasty is now officially dead after being on life support since Tom Brady departed ahead of the 2020 season.

Belichick will look to continue coaching in the NFL for the third franchise as he chases the all-time coaching win record. It will be strange to see him donning a logo other than the Patriot for the first time in a shade under 25 years.

Meantime, the Patriots need to find a Belichick replacement. There are two ways they could go here, internal, hiring someone already on the staff, or external, picking from the wide open field of candidates.

Truth is, though, even if the Patriots look toward the outside world, it's tough to see them going with a total wild card with no ties whatsoever to Belichick or the Patriot Way. Robert Kraft will likely go with someone familiar who has a good feel for the team's winning culture and wants to prioritize the enablement and protection of that.

Here is a mix of candidates from both perspectives, some that fans are sure to love, and some they're sure to be uneasy with.

Hate: Joe Judge, internal

We know the Patriots are likely to look toward their internal Rolodex to find a candidate that can preach and carry on "The Patriot Way" instilled over the last two and a half decades by Bill Belichick, but that doesn't mean just anyone with association to the franchise is the right person for the job.

Judge is an avoidable candidate, his recent history littered with failure more than success, both with external and internal opportunities.

Judge lasted just two seasons coaching the New York Giants. He went 10-23 across two seasons and had a definitive list of blunders in a very short period of time to point to that justify the firing.

Moreover, his performance back with the Patriots since then has been poor. He was offensive coordinator/QB coach until Bill O'Brien returned, and he and Matt Patricia both deserve a lot of blame for New England's miserable offense during the 2022 season, since they effectively shared OC duties.

Whether or not they were positioned for success is debatable as well, but there's more to dislike about the possibility of Judge running the ship than to like.