An NFL team’s Hall of Fame is an honor reserved for the few. Only those who’ve left a lasting mark on the franchise are recognized and immortalized by the organization. While some names are obvious choices — like Tom Brady being inducted into the New England Patriots Hall of Fame in 2024 — others can come as a surprise.
On Tuesday, April 1, Patriots owner Robert Kraft publicly announced the induction of a controversial figure — one who nonetheless played a key role in a historic era for New England as head coach during the 1990s.
Bill Parcells Will Be Inducted Into Patriots Hall of Fame
The relationship between Bill Parcells and the Patriots, particularly with Kraft, is one of the most well-documented in NFL history. Featured in documentaries like “The Two Bills” and “The Dynasty,” it’s no secret that the disagreements between Kraft and Parcells soured the head coach’s tenure with the franchise from 1993 to 1996.
Still, Parcells’ efforts to rebuild a team that had been stuck in losing seasons before his arrival did not go unnoticed, and a long-awaited reconciliation now appears to have taken place. Kraft has now publicly addressed the coach’s induction into the Patriots Hall of Fame as a contributor.
“I called Bill Parcells, and I asked him if he would be kind enough to accept going into our Patriot Hall of Fame. He had been a finalist for five years, and going back to your question, while both of us are alive in our late thirties, I thought it would be great, given what he’s done for the team, if he would accept entry as a contributor into the Patriot Hall of Fame, and he accepted,” Kraft announced.
Robert Kraft announces Bill Parcells as a contributor to the Patriots Hall of Fame.@TheHall | #NEPats pic.twitter.com/sBE1m01ID4
— New England Patriots (@Patriots) April 1, 2025
Parcells won two Super Bowls during his career — but with another franchise, the New York Giants. With New England, however, he led the team to the playoffs in his first season as head coach. And in 1996, he guided the Patriots to their first division title in 11 years, eventually reaching the Super Bowl, where they lost to the Green Bay Packers.
Troubled Relationship With Robert Kraft
When Parcells took over the Patriots in 1993, the franchise was coming off several disastrous years both on and off the field. The team had won just two games the previous season and was trying to rebuild under new ownership.
Kraft purchased the franchise in 1994, and Parcells, already a Super Bowl-winning coach with the Giants, was seen as the man who could turn things around.
While the Patriots began improving on the field, tensions started to build behind the scenes, particularly over control of personnel decisions. Parcells believed the head coach should have a significant say in roster moves, especially during the draft. Kraft, however, took a more hands-on approach than previous owners, leading to frequent clashes between the two.
The breaking point came during the 1996 NFL Draft. Parcells wanted to go in a different direction with the team’s first-round pick, but Kraft and the front office ultimately chose wide receiver Terry Glenn. Feeling undermined, Parcells famously said, “If they want you to cook the dinner, at least they ought to let you shop for some of the groceries.”
The quote became a symbol of the rift between coach and owner.
Even with all the internal conflict, Parcells led New England to Super Bowl 31 at the end of the 1996 season. But following the loss to the Packers, he resigned and accepted a job with the New York Jets — a move that sparked major controversy.
Parcells took much of his coaching staff with him, and Kraft accused the Jets of tampering. The NFL stepped in and brokered a deal that sent a first-round pick from New York to New England, along with two more draft picks as compensation.
Now, Parcells is finally getting the recognition he deserves as a key figure in the rebuilding of the Patriots — a franchise that would go on to become the greatest dynasty in NFL history.