NFL commissioner Roger Goodell, a hefty-Maine oceanfront taxpayer for many years, says he’s pulling for Kraft & Co.
That would be New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft and former highly successful Pats coach Bill Belichick.
Both Kraft and Belihick missed entry into the Hall of Fame in the past two weeks, according to ESPN.
But Goodell, long-time property owner in Scarborough, is expecting they will eventually get in.
“Bill Belichick’s record goes without saying, same with the Patriots and Robert Kraft, who is also a candidate,” Goodell said. “They are spectacular. They have contributed so much to this game, and I believe they will be Hall of Famers.”
Goodell was quoted by ESPN, which has been way ahead of the legacy media on the so-far secret Hall of Fame voting results.
ESPN reported last week that Belichick fell short of the votes needed for induction this year, setting off a torrent of criticism over the veteran coach’s exclusion and the Hall of Fame’s voting process.
Kraft said in a statement that Belichick “is the greatest coach of all time and he unequivocally deserves to be a unanimous first-ballot Pro Football Hall of Famer.”
Just days later Kraft, like his former head coach, failed selection for this year’s Pro Football Hall of Fame class, multiple league sources told ESPN.
Kraft, a first-time HOF finalist this year, did not receive enough votes from the 50-person selection committee.
The HOF Class of 2026 will be announced Thursday night at the NFL Honors in San Francisco, three days before the 60th annual Super Bowl.
Though neither of the two men who with QB Tom Brady helped lead New England to six Super Bowl titles will be inducted into the Hall of Fame this year, the Pats on Sunday have a chance to become the team with the most Super Bowl wins.
The team is tied with the Steelers for the most Super Bowl titles of any franchise – six each.
A win Sunday in Super Bowl LX against the Seahawks would leave the Pats in sole possession of the most Super Bowl wins, and Kraft has been the principal owner for all of them.
Chief NFL honcho Goodell and wife Jane Skinner own a $12.8 million vacation home in the ritzy Prouts Neck section of Scarborough.
The seaside residence gained attention in 2015 when local police increased patrols following his decision to uphold Brady’s four-game “Deflategate” suspension, which also prompted local fans to fly banners over his property.
The commissioner’s wife, daughter of former U.S. Transportation Secretary Sam Skinner, previously worked for WCSH-TV in Portland.
She has also worked for Fox News, co-hosting Happening Now.
