Bill Belichick hasn’t exactly spread his wings since parting ways with the New England Patriots earlier this month. The 71-year-old living legend has only interviewed with the Atlanta Falcons, taking two meetings with owner Arthur Blank and Co. over the past week or so.
But reports have suggested at least one mystery team may be interested in Belichick as the 2024 NFL hiring cycle rolls on. Who could that club be? Let’s see if we can figure it out.
Who Is the Bill Belichick Mystery Team?
ESPN’s Adam Schefter suggested on Wednesday that Belichick may no longer be the favorite in Atlanta, and on Thursday afternoon, the Falcons officially hired Raheem Morris as their next head coach.
Schefter indicated there is a “real possibility” that Belichick will not get a head coaching job in 2024. No other club has expressed interest in meeting with Belichick — yet.
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Throughout the hiring process, Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk has maintained that multiple teams are considering a Belichick pursuit. One of those franchises reportedly still has a head coach in place, while the other does not.
Let’s run through the teams that could theoretically consider a run at Belichick, beginning with the organizations still searching for a new HC.
Seattle Seahawks
The Seahawks are built to win now. Quarterback Geno Smith, a WR trio of DK Metcalf, Tyler Lockett, and Jaxon Smith-Njigba, and a pair of young offensive tackles should keep Seattle in the playoff mix heading into 2024, even though Pete Carroll is no longer around.
From that standpoint, the Seahawks make sense as a potential Belichick destination. While the pieces on Seattle’s roster might not be a perfect fit for a Belichick system on either side of the ball, he could work with the available talent before molding the roster to his liking.
In a watered-down NFC, the Seahawks + Belichick could be a force.
However, Seattle general manager John Schneider surely has no interest in bringing in an established legend like Belichick after working under Carroll for the past 14 years. Schneider had to defer to Carroll on all personnel decisions during their tenure. He’s ready to run the show, and Belichick would only hinder Schneider’s plans.
Washington Commanders
Josh Harris is building something in the nation’s capital. The new Commanders owner has already hired the top GM candidate on the board, bringing in former San Francisco 49ers executive Adam Peters to lead Washington’s front office.
Peters, a highly coveted personnel chief, had regularly declined to even interview for other general manager jobs in recent years. But the Commanders were an attractive landing spot, owning the No. 2 overall pick in the 2024 NFL Draft and boasting the most cap space in the league.
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Still, Washington seems to be moving in a different direction. In fact, reports have outright stated that the Commanders are not interested in Belichick. Detroit Lions offensive coordinator Ben Johnson remains the favorite to land the Washington job.
New York Giants
Let’s move on to teams that still have a head coach in place. Remember, PFT indicated that at least one club with HC still employed is thinking about pursuing Belichick.
How about a reunion with the Giants? Belichick worked with Big Blue from 1979 through 1990, winning two Super Bowls as New York’s defensive coordinator under head coach Bill Parcells.
He’s regularly spoken fondly of his time with the Giants — could he head to NYC?
Giants head coach Brian Daboll — a longtime Belichick disciple — won the NFL’s Coach of the Year award after leading his team to nine wins and a playoff victory in his debut campaign. But New York slid to 6-11 in 2023, while interpersonal conflicts surrounded the club all year.
Daboll eventually fired DC Wink Martindale after the season following multiple verbal spats. Subsequent reports have suggested that Daboll’s abrasive personality and unnecessary rage can be draining for the Giants players and staff.
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If Giants owner John Mara finds all this unbecoming, it wouldn’t be a total shock if he decided to make a change — and Belichick would have to top his list.
There are plenty of obstacles here. Belichick and Daboll are close; the former might not want to usurp the latter. Daboll was allowed to fire Martindale and is interviewing new DC candidates, suggesting New York is keeping him for another season.
But of all the NFL teams that still have a head coach in place, the Giants make the most sense for Belichick.
New Orleans Saints
Are there any other teams with an HC that might be interested in Belichick?
Chicago Bears head coach Matt Eberflus and Jacksonville Jaguars head coach Doug Pederson were allowed to hire new coordinators. Mike Tomlin isn’t leaving the Pittsburgh Steelers. Kevin Stefanski was on the hot seat entering the season but kept his job by taking the Cleveland Browns to the playoffs.
It’s difficult to find other obvious fits, leaving us to grasp at straws.
The Saints went all-in on the 2023 campaign but lost the NFC South title to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and couldn’t sneak into the dance as a Wild Card team. Head coach Dennis Allen’s job was seemingly in peril after the regular season.
However, New Orleans general manager Mickey Loomis committed to Allen on Jan. 17, six days after Belichick left the Patriots. The Saints knew Belichick was available and still pledged their support for Allen, indicating that New Orleans doesn’t plan to alter its course.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Todd Bowles was thought to be on the hot seat entering the 2023 season. He looked to be in serious danger when the Buccaneers fell to 4-7 after a Week 12 loss to the Indianapolis Colts.
But Tampa Bay rebounded, winning five of its last six to win the NFC South crown before upsetting the Philadelphia Eagles in the Wild Card round. While the Bucs narrowly fell to the Detroit Lions in Round 2, Bowles undoubtedly posted a successful campaign.
Buccaneers general manager Jason Licht worked for the Patriots before Belichick arrived and stuck around during the future Hall of Famer’s tenure, working in various scouting and personnel roles from 1999 through 2002 and again from 2009 through 2011.
That connection probably isn’t even for Licht to toss Bowles aside after back-to-back division-winning seasons. But the allure of hiring arguably the NFL’s greatest coach is there.
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