In years past, Bill Belichick had to coach against the Philadelphia Eagles twice in the Super Bowl. One reporter now says Belichick and the team were “very interested” in one another during the 2024 head coach hiring cycle.
Boston Reporter Reveals Bill Belichick/Philadelphia Eagles Interest
While appearing on NBC Sports Boston on Tuesday, Greg Bedard of the Boston Sports Journal shared some intel that the Eagles and the six-time Super Bowl-winning head coach had mutual interest.
And this news comes off the heels of the late-season collapse that Philly witnessed under current head coach Nick Sirianni.
“The Eagles were very interested in (Bill) Belichick if things didn’t work out with Nick Sirianni,” Bedard shared. More enticing — Bedard doesn’t believe that this could be the last time Belichick and Philadelphia will have any kind of intrigue towards one another.
“They could be at the front of the line if things again go poorly next year,” Bedard said.
Again, Sirianni went from fast-rising young head coach who took the Eagles to the Super Bowl to one now suddenly on the hot seat.
His 2023 Eagles team went from 10-1 and in the driver’s seat for the top seed in the NFC to falling to 11-6 and losing ground to the Dallas Cowboys in the NFC East title race. Worse for Sirianni and the Eagles, they were immediately bounced out of the postseason by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the Wild Card round.
Is Belichick Being Considered for the Final 2024 NFL Head Coach Openings?
Belichick was once thought of as a strong contender to land one of the seven NFL head coaching openings. There was even a brief moment when he appeared to be the heavy favorite to land the Atlanta Falcons job.
But now, five of the seven openings have gone in a different direction and opted not to hire the legendary head coach. Even the Falcons pivoted elsewhere and decided to lure back former interim head coach Raheem Morris to lead the franchise.
This now leaves the Washington Commanders and Seattle Seahawks as the final remaining possibilities for Belichick.
Which teams interviewed Belichick? As detailed on PFN’s head coaching tracker, the answer is just one — the Falcons.
Again, Belichick was once thought of as a contender there and interviewed twice — on Jan. 15 and on the 19th. However, per Sports Illustrated NFL insider Albert Breer, Falcons owner Arthur Blank was pulled into different directions by people inside the building.
“My understanding is Blank went into the process wanting to hire Belichick as the coach,” writes Breer. “But those around the owner, fearing what that could mean for them, nudged him in different directions. After a while, the amount of change hiring Belichick could require weighed on Blank, especially when taking into consideration that making that amount of change might only get him two years of Belichick.”
MORE: 2024 NFL Coordinator Interview Tracker
Breer continued, “And, again, none of this is really Belichick’s fault. It’s just that if you’re going to hire him, you have to go all in on that, and given that he’s not going to coach for another decade, it makes sense that that’d be hard for an owner to reckon with.”
Meanwhile, Washington and Seattle don’t seem to have shown serious interest in Belichick. The former ended up holding a follow-up interview with Dallas Cowboys defensive coordinator Dan Quinn on Tuesday morning per CBS Sports NFL insider Josina Anderson.
As the 2023 NFL season comes to a close, the 2024 NFL Draft is on the horizon. Pro Football Network has you covered with everything from team draft needs to the Top 100 prospects available. Plus, fire up PFN’s Mock Draft Simulator to put yourself in the general manager’s seat and make all the calls!