Free Republic

(CNN)New England Patriots head coach Bill Belichick has announced that he is declining the Presidential Medal of Freedom, which he was scheduled to receive from President Donald Trump on Thursday. Belichick cited the "tragic events of last week" as leading to his decision. Pro-Trump rioters rampaged in the US Capitol last Wednesday. Five people died as a result of the chaos, including a US Capitol Police officer. House Democrats want to impeach Trump, accusing him of "incitement of insurrection."......

Patriots’ HC Bill Belichick will not be traveling to Washington nor accepting the Presidential Medal of Freedom, he announced today.

Bill Belichick declined to receive the Presidential Medal of Freedom from President Trump, seemingly breaking from a friendship with the billionaire business mogul. Belichick put out a statement Monday after a report surfaced he would receive it later this week.

In this historic moment, there is no middle ground. The choices are to support the notion of equality, liberty, and justice for all, or not to. Patriots cornerback Stephon Gilmore, the 2019 NFL defensive player of the year, left no doubt regarding his position on the matter, given his involvement in the powerful and moving video produced by several prominent NFL players. So where does his boss stand? The question of Patriots coach Bill Belichick’s silence has been raised by Tom Curran of NBC Sports Boston. At a time when more and more coaches are speaking out in compelling fashion...

A team quarterbacked by Ryan Tannehill beat Tom Brady’s Patriots in the playoffs in Foxborough. It was the second straight shocking loss for the Patriots, and it ended a season that started with so much promise and hope behind a historically good defense. The Titans rode the NFL rushing champion, Derrick Henry, to the win. His 178 yards on the ground were the most for a player in the playoffs since Colin Kaepernick had 181 as the San Francisco 49ers’ quarterback in 2013. This home loss in the wild-card is uncharacteristic for the Patriots. It prompts questions about the continued...

Here is the reality about the the myriad of Patriots cheating scandals that have surfaced under Bill Belichick: despite the sensationalist national media coverage, they are all minimal infractions, and going on the facts, incredibly dull. That is the case regarding the latest allegation of supposed Patriots subterfuge. It all started Monday afternoon, when Bengals head coach Zac Taylor confirmed at his press conference the NFL is investigating New England for filming the Cincinnati sideline from the press box during its contest Sunday against the Browns. The bullet-point description of the claim reads like a redux of Spygate, the infamous...

It is, for now, a pipe dream that Giants fans can’t help but smoke: Bill Belichick in a blue hoodie standing on the sidelines at MetLife Stadium, chants of “Dee-Fense” erupting everywhere, reminding him of the way it was at Giants Stadium when Harry Carson owned the point of attack and Lawrence Taylor roared around the edge to terrify quarterbacks, providing cover for Eli Manning or Davis Webb or rookie Josh Rosen. SNIP But if you are the Giants … you damn well should throw it.

While the media collectively called President Trump's comments in Huntsville, Alabama insensitive to those suffering chronic traumatic encephalopathy (only because they saw the Will Smith movie and that's the extent of their football knowledge), real fans knew exactly what the president was referring to. Anyone who's participated in any sport knows you play like you practice. Pop Warner-on-up knows there's no way to properly practice tackling without pads, that is unless you're playing rugby. Practicing with pads only one day before an NFL game... seriously?

Bravo to Bill Belichick. A Twitter user yesterday afternoon posted a couple of pictures of the prodigious coach wearing a shirt bearing an illustration that shocked some, confused others and pleased many more. The text reads, “Life is great” and features a depiction of an armed man in a turban being attacked by a military dog as he’s being chased by a soldier carrying a rifle. Is this hate-wear? No way. This is patriot-wear the Patriots head coach was showing off. The shirts are sold on a site called www.tridentk9.org, run by Jim Amann, now a deputy sheriff in Los...

More details are emerging regarding the death of former Patriots tight end Aaron Hernandez, and they’re troubling. Via WBZ-TV, the phrase “John 3:16” was written on Hernandez’s forehead, and red marker was on his hands and feet. “John 3:16” is a popular Biblical verse, the 16th verse of the third chapter of the Gospel According to John: “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.”

Aaron Hernandez’s murder conviction is expected to be dismissed posthumously because of a legal rule called “abatement.” That would mean, legally speaking, Aaron Hernandez died an innocent man. Hernandez hanged himself in his prison cell and was found dead early Wednesday morning, the Massachusetts Department of Correction said. Hernandez had been serving a sentence of life in prison without parole after being convicted of the June 2013 murder of Odin Lloyd.

TRUMP GREETS THE MANCHESTER, NEW HAMPSHIRE CROWD WITH OUTSTANDING NEWS! Patriots Quarterback Tom Brady and Coach Bill Belichick endorse Donald Trump.

Technophobic mad genius football coach Bill Belichick has waved the white flag when it comes to his battle with Microsoft Surface. The New England Patriots head man told reporters on Tuesday that he will no longer use the tablet for analyzing in-game plays. 'As you probably noticed, I'm done with the tablets,' Belichick told reporters during a conference call, according to ESPN. 'I've given [the Suface] as much time as I can give them. They're just too undependable for me. I'm going to stick with pictures as several of our other coaches do as well, because there just isn't enough...

Patriots head coach Bill Belichick started his press conference on Friday with a message of support for the Boston Police Department and two of its officers who were critically wounded in a shootout Wednesday night. “Before we get into Cincinnati, on behalf of the team, I just want to express our appreciation and support for the Boston Police Department,” Belichick said. “I can’t imagine, but I can imagine the amount of stress that department has to deal with and their challenges every day, and the difficulty of the situation they’ve been put in.”

Fox Sports’ Clay Travis did an interview with GOP candidate Jeb Bush and noted that he went to high school for a period of time with New England Patriots coach Bill Belichick. Bush said Belichick was a “brilliant football genius” even back in high school. Travis brought up Bush’s admission to smoking marijuana when he was young, and asked him if he smoked any with Belichick back when they were in school. “Just for the record, no, sir,” responded Bush.

FOXBORO -- We know Patriots quarterback Tom Brady reveres Bill Belichick, and on Wednesday he put his head coach next to God. Kind of. With Pope Francis stateside, Brady was asked about the Holy Father and laughed when posed the question, "You rank Bill or the Pope higher?" "In Bill we trust! You kidding me?" Brady answered.

Determining Miss America is a serious matter. We need a true all-around woman to hold the title. She needs to have a talent. She needs to look good in various clothing. And she wouldn't be able to do ... whatever it is Miss America does if she wasn't able to answer questions about current events in a cogent, confident, smiley and inoffensive manner. In Sunday night's Miss America competition, the contestants were asked questions about the issues of the day: gun control, Planned Parenthood, Donald Trump's presidential campaign and ... DeflateGate? Yes, Miss Georgia -- aka Betty Cantrell -- was...

<p>Uh-oh. Another man checked out Chrissy Teigen’s assets and her hubby John Legend is not happy about it! The culprit? New England Patriots coach Bill Belichick. Unfortunately for Bill, this isn’t the first time his eyes were glued somewhere they shouldn’t be — and John wasn’t afraid to call him out on it!</p>

It was a day that should have belonged to the Super Bowl champion New England Patriots, but in a reversal of last February’s fortune it came to a dramatic and sudden halt. Interception, Obama. The president called a very different play as the champs gathered at the White House South Lawn to accept an attaboy for their Super Bowl victory. But the egotist in chief made it all about him. “I usually tell a bunch of jokes at these events,” he mused, “but with the Patriots in town I was worried that 11 of 12 of them would fall flat.”...

New England Patriots coach Bill Belichick wore a “Don’t Tread on Me” t-shirt to the Super Bowl on Sunday.