Bill Belichick on potential NFL interest: "Nothing's changed"

With six head-coaching openings in the NFL, and possibly more, Bill Belichick's name will be mentioned publicly for one or more of the jobs. Whether he's privately considered for any of them remains to be seen.

Appearing on the Let’s Go! podcast, Belichick was asked by host Jim Gray whether Belichick is interested in returning to the NFL.

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“Nothing's changed," Belichick said. "I’m where I was a month ago. I'm here at North Carolina. I really appreciate the love and support that we've gotten from the community down here, from the school, from Chancellor Roberts, the ADs, Bubba Cunningham, Steve Newmark, working with Mike Lombardi and our staff here. We're building a good program and I'm excited about the direction we're headed in.”

It wasn't a "no." But it's not relevant until someone wants to talk to him.

Since being fired two years ago, he has had one interview, with the Falcons. The Falcons are looking again, with a clean slate (for now) in the front office.

Would owner Arthur Blank want to give Belichick another look, periodic trolling by Jordon Hudson notwithstanding? While it's unclear where his coaching skills currently reside (e.g., would Belichick put a defensive coach in charge of the offense?), we're confident that Belichick wouldn't have given $100 million guaranteed to Kirk Cousins before using a top-10 pick on Michael Penix Jr. if he'd been the Atlanta coach in 2024.

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Belichick is currently on the board for five existing vacancies: +4000 for the Giants, +8000 for the Titans, +4000 for the Browns, +1200 for the Falcons, and +1600 for the Raiders. (DraftKings doesn't have odds for the Cardinals' job, for some reason.)

A team will first need to be interested in Belichick. And he'd need to be interested in the team. (Belichick expressed to Gray disdain for teams that use search firms, which could make the search firm running the Falcons' search less inclined to seek him out.)

Last year, when it became clear to Belichick that he wouldn't get a job in the 2025 cycle, he went to North Carolina. Lombardi thereafter questioned whether there are any good jobs in the NFL, while also explaining that he and Belichick prefer working in college football.

Most of the jobs that come open are open for a reason. Still, if Belichick wants to catch Don Shula for the all-time wins record, no number of victories at UNC will matter.