After being fired by the New England Patriots following the 2023 season, Bill Belichick was passed over for the Atlanta Falcons’ coaching job and failed to land a head-coaching interview from another NFL team. One year later, things once again look bleak for one of the best coaches in NFL history.
Belichick, who turns 73 years old in April, dealt with rumors that he wanted too much power in the Falcons’ organization. After serving as the Patriots’ coach and general manager for years, the future Hall of Famer is widely believed to be seeking similar power with his next team.
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- Bill Belichick coaching record: 302-165 record (.647), 31-13 in the NFL Playoffs
However, as Belichick waits for the NFL coaching carousel to begin, college football rumors have now linked him to the North Carolina Tar Heels’ coaching vacancy. Despite having never coached at the collegiate level, Belichick interviewed with Tar Heels’ officials and seemed to be emerging as a viable option to take over North Carolina’s football program.
While his interest in becoming a college football coach seems to be real, especially after he expressed interest on the Pat McAfee Show, it seems many around the NFL are highly skeptical of the recent rumors.
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According to Mike Sando of The Athletic, several NFL executives outright “laughed at the idea” of Belichick becoming a college football coach. In fact, many around the league aren’t taking it seriously whatsoever.
The skepticism is easy to understand. In the era of Name, Image and Likeness that has seen countless players enter the transfer portal or threaten to leave if NIL demands aren’t met, Belichick would be throwing himself into a very difficult environment. Despite his success in the NFL, many are also questioning if his track record will mean anything to teenagers who last saw Belichick win a playoff game during the 2018 NFL season.
If Belichick’s interest in becoming the Tar Heels’ coach is genuine, there might be another motivation behind it. Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk reported that Belichick has been “very surprised” that he hasn’t heard from NFL teams inquiring about his interest in becoming their head coach.
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Part of the reasoning for teams shying away from Belichick could be tied to his reported desire to have power similar to what he held in New England. However, NFL executives told Sando that the Jacksonville Jaguars might be the only team willing to do that.
All of this comes amid reports that NFL teams just aren’t as high on Belichick as a coaching candidate as initially expected. If that proves to be true early this offseason, there now seems to be a real chance that Belichick could be done as an NFL head coach.
