These tributes show how beloved Bill Belichick is in New England

The news of Bill Belichick's departure from the New England Patriots came as a surprise to few after the six-time Super Bowl champions finished the season 4-13 — their worst finish during Belichick's tenure.

Still, as the second-winningest coach in NFL history, he leaves a nearly unmatched legacy, as well as a fanbase whose dedication runs deep.

Here are some of the ways Patriots fans have shown their devotion to their greatest head coach throughout his storied career.

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NHL goalie's Winter Classic helmet

In January 2016, Gillette Stadium hosted its first NHL Winter Classic outdoor ice hockey game, with the Boston Bruins welcoming the Montreal Canadiens to Foxborough.

Mike Condon, a former Canadiens goalie from Newton, Massachusetts, honored Belichick by plastering the head coach’s portrait and four Lombardi trophies (it was accurate at the time!) across the back plate of the helmet that he customized for the event. Tom Brady was depicted, too, and both Patriots legends appeared to have signed their images.

A detailed view of the helmet Montreal Canadiens goalie Mike Condon wore during the 2016 NHL Winter Classic at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Massachusetts, on Jan. 1, 2016. The helmet shows New England Patriots coach Bill Belichick and quarterback Tom Brady.

Bill the bovine

In January 2018, shortly before Super Bowl LI, where the Patriots beat the Atlanta Falcons for their fifth Super Bowl victory, a University of Vermont student was tasked with naming a newborn calf at the school’s dairy education barn.

Hoping the cow would grow to be "big and strong," then-sophomore Age Desranleau dubbed the animal Belichick.

A student from the University of Vermont named one of the school’s new calves after the football coach of her favorite NFL team: Bill Belichick.

Knock knock...

Inspired by his recent viewing of "The Christmas Carol," where Ebenezer Scrooge’s deceased, long-time business partner Jacob Marley appears to the protagonist as a door-knocker, Rhode Island-based artist Palmer Murphy immortalized Belichick’s signature hooded scowl with one of the devices in early 2018.

A Rhode Island artist crafted a one-of-a-kind Bill Belichick door knocker.

Glow up

Boston-based tailor Alan Rouleau elevated Belichick’s wardrobe from his characteristic cut-off sweats to custom suits — even convincing him to don a pocket square.

A tailor shares how he convinced Patriots coach Bill Belichick to up his style game, getting him out of a sweatshirt and into a suit, complete with pocket squares.

Legends in LEGO

After an elementary school in Peabody commissioned North Andover artist Rob Surrette to design a mural representing the school’s motto, "Aim high...together we will fly," Surrette enlisted the help of the school’s students in building a LEGO portrait that depicts either Belichick or Brady depending on the angle from which you view the work.

Captain Samuel Brown Elementary school in Peabody, Mass., built a mural of Patriots head coach Bill Belichick with legos during the team's 2019 playoff run that led to Belichick's sixth and final Super Bowl win with New England.

Tattoos... so many tattoos

Throughout the years, many Patriots fans have proudly declared their fandom by inking a portrait of Belichick on their own skin, but one Bridgewater resident went so far as to compare his brilliance to that Albert Einstein, Boston.com reported.