The Patriots have one of the highest cap spaces in the NFL, but former head coach Bill Belichick says top free agents aren’t coming to New England because of Massachusetts’ ‘millionaires tax.’

Belichick, who left Foxboro in January after a legendary run and is set to serve as a TV analyst this season, made his case on ESPN’s ‘The Pat McAfee Show.’

“It’s Taxachusetts,” Belichick told cohosts and former NFL players Pat McAfee and AJ Hawk on Monday’s show. “Virtually every player, even the practice squad, well the minimum players are pretty close to $1 million so once you hit that $1 million threshold then you pay more state tax in Massachusetts. It’s just another thing you have to contend with in negotiations up there.”

The voter-approved “millionaires tax” delivered roughly $2.2 billion last fiscal year, a massive haul that shot past original projections set by Gov. Maura Healey’s administration.

Massachusetts budget writers said earlier this month that the 4% surtax on incomes over $1 million generated hundreds of millions more for transportation and education projects than expected during its first full year on the books.

Belichick brought up the millionaires tax while highlighting situations that some of the NFL’s top wide receivers – Dallas’ CeeDee Lamb and San Fransisco’s Brandon Aiyuk – found themselves in this offseason and training camp.

“You want to try to get as much as you can from the team you want to be with,” Belichick said. “If you’re already on that team then how much is it really worth by the time you move, pay your 50% tax, or your Millionaire’s Tax in New England?

“It’s not like Tennessee or Florida or Nevada or some of these teams that have no state income tax,” the former Patriots coach and general manager added. “You get hit pretty hard on that with the agents – they’ll come and sledgehammer you down about the types of taxes they’re paying. We don’t get any benefit from that.”

Belichick has a point, in a way.

New England lost out on bringing in free agents DeAndre Hopkins and Calvin Ridley the past two offseasons, with the wide receivers electing to sign with the Titans.

In July 2023, Hopkins agreed to a 2-year, $26 million deal with Tennessee, worth up to $32 million with incentives. The Patriots were willing to match the Titans’ offer of $15 million for last season, but the team wanted a “far higher percentage of that total tied to incentives,” according to Sports Illustrated.

Jason McCourty, who played both in New England and Tennessee, highlighted during a segment on NFL Network soon after that state tax may have been a factor in Hopkins’ decision.

“We laughed about how there’s no state tax in Tennessee,” McCourty said of speaking with Hopkins. “There’s none in Texas and there’s none in Florida. There’s a lot of games where maybe the contract isn’t as much but he will be making the most of it.”

Ridley signed a four-year, $92 million contract with the Titans this offseason despite having an offer from the Patriots. The reasons Ridley signed elsewhere were out of New England’s control, owner Robert Kraft said in March at the NFL Annual Meeting.

“We had a situation where the taxes were, like, almost 10% higher,” Kraft said. “We offered — we were willing to keep going at that premium. But he didn’t want to be in the Northeast.”

The Patriots entered the offseason holding $82.9 million in cap room, the second-most in the league, according to Over The Cap. Jerod Mayo, after being tapped as the new head coach, said in January the team intended to spend in free agency

Less than two weeks out from Week 1, New England’s cap room sits at roughly $50.6 million, still the second highest, the latest data show. The Patriots have ranked among the NFL’s cheapest teams by cash spending over the last few seasons and rank dead last over the 10 years, per ESPN.

The millionaire’s tax hasn’t impacted the Celtics and their spending ways.

The 2025-26 Celtics are on track to be the most expensive roster in NBA history, with $225 million in payroll plus upward of $210 million in luxury tax charges.

In response to Belichick’s explanation of the Massachusetts millionaires tax, McAfee said, “That’s good business, baby, for Massachusetts and from the agents, but you’re right. … We now all want to pay our fair share. Where’s it going? I would like to learn that, but we will stay away from that.”

Beacon Hill decided to spend only $1 billion in surtax revenue in the fiscal year 2024 budget and left any dollars collected beyond that threshold for reserve accounts.

Lawmakers set aside $524 million in surtax dollars for education initiatives, including $229 million to allow those 25 and older to obtain a degree or certificate for free through any community college. Another $477 million was marked for education projects, including improving accessibility at MBTA stations.

Following Belichick’s interview on ESPN Monday, state watchdog Massachusetts Fiscal Alliance called on lawmakers and Gov. Maura Healey to “repeal this harmful tax hike.”

The group highlighted how a national tax watchdog found that the millionaire’s tax spurred Massachusetts’ business tax climate to drop to the fifth worst state in the country for competitiveness last year.

It also emphasized how taxpayers are fleeing Massachusetts, at a rate that cost the state roughly $3.9 billion in 2022.

“Our state’s competitive disadvantage continues to be ignored by both the Healey administration and the legislature,” Mass Fiscal spokesman Paul Diego Craney said in a statement. “Perhaps if people start blaming them for the Patriots losses, they’ll begin to pay attention. They’ve certainly played a part in it.”

Andrew Farnitano, a spokesperson for Raise Up Massachusetts Coalition, a group that backed the push for the surtax in 2022, called it “exciting” that the surtax exceeded expectations.

“These are really big changes that are making the state more affordable for working families, putting money in the pockets of working people, and making our state more competitive,” he told the Herald earlier this month.

Patriots owner Robert Kraft (Photo By Matt Stone/Boston Herald, File)