Bill

Belichick

ESPN reporters, including Jeremy Fowler, confirmed what Falcons owner Arthur Blank had said in February after the team went with Raheem Morris over Belichick, the second winningest coach in NFL history. Belichick had expressed willingness to work closely with Atlanta’s front office, including general manager Terry Fontenot. He had not — as some had assumed — demanded control of all team operations, though some in the Atlanta front office worried that Belichick would eventually take control of roster building. Some in the organization viewed Belichick as “an older, stoic coach who’d blow up the building.” Blank was leaning toward hiring Belichick, according to ESPN, before talking with Patriots owner Robert Kraft, who warned Blank not to trust Belichick. A source close to Kraft told ESPN the Pats owner “found Bill to be extremely difficult and obstinate and kind of stubborn and, in the end, not worthy of his trust. And also very, very, very arrogant.” Other teams, including the Titans, were turned off by what Belichick had done to the New England offense in the years after parting ways with Tom Brady. Belichick, per ESPN, will pursue head coaching vacancies next January, including, possibly, the Cowboys.

In addition to clearing the air of those rumors, Blank also said Belichick was never offered the Falcons’ head coaching job after it was previously reported by Boomer Esiason earlier in the week. Belichick remains available for any team to sign, and was last reported to be on the Eagles’ radar, although nothing has materialized since that report.

According to Russini, the Commanders spoke with Belichick, who “had support from some decision makers.” That support wasn’t enough to land him the job, however, as the Commanders decided on Dan Quinn as their new head coach on Thursday. With all head coaching vacancies now filled, Belichick is officially on the outside looking in on the 2024 season. While he could opt to take a coordinator or front office role with a team before the start of the season, the six-time Super Bowl champ will have to decide next offseason whether he wants to continue as a head coach.

The team is willing to give head coach Nick Sirianni one more season to right the ship after he agreed to fire key members of his coaching staff to retain his job. Bedard said the Eagles “could be at the front of the line if things again go poorly” for Sirianni and the Eagles in 2024. With no team interested in Belichick this offseason — following a disastrous final two years in New England — he should be available if the Eagles are ready to fire Sirianni next January. Belichick will be 72 by then.

This doesn’t come as much of a surprise, as neither team has interviewed Belichick since he and the Patriots parted ways earlier this month. Outside of the Falcons interviewing the six-time Super Bowl winner, the coaching market has been quiet for Belichick, who appears unlikely to land a head coaching gig for the 2024 season. As Rapoport points out, it’s possible Belichick earns some kind of front office position with a team later in the year, sits out the season altogether, or even lands a TV gig. Regardless, the head coaching market appears to have dried up for him barring an unexpected change.

The greatest coach of the 21st century had been viewed as the favorite in Atlanta before executive Rich McKay apparently began to talk owner Arthur Blank out of it. It would seem Belichick was — unsurprisingly — seeking too much front office control. The Falcons officially moved on Thursday when they hired Rams DC Raheem Morris to replace Arthur Smith. It seems absurd that Belichick can’t get a job, but teams are understandably wary of handing out full personnel control. It would still seem to be a risk worth taking, but neither Seattle nor Washington profile as a great fit. Washington is reportedly locked in on Lions OC Ben Johnson.

“There is a real possibility” Belichick won’t land a head coaching job this offseason after parting ways with the Patriots after another disappointing regular season. The Falcons’ head coaching search remains “wide open,” per Schefter,” after interviewing Belichick twice this month but the team. Atlanta’s expansive search probably means Belichick won’t end up as the team’s head coach — a near certainty just a couple weeks ago. The legendary coach might have to sit out a year before finding a suitable head coaching spot, if any teams are interested.

Florio said this “comes from a desire to avoid the dynamic of reporters aggressively trying to develop sources at any and all levels of the organization.” He added: “The fewer the number of reporters covering a team, the less Belichick has to worry about reporters cozying up to people he otherwise needs to trust to zip it.” Perhaps this is a reason why Belichick was attracted to the Falcons head coaching vacancy, but it certainly narrows the options of the 73-year-old coach. Since interviewing Belichick last week, the Falcons have widened their coaching search. ESPN’s Adam Schefter said Atlanta’s coaching search is “wide open” headed into the final week of January.

The Falcons are interviewing Texans’ OC Bobby Slowik today and have meetings with Mike Vrabel and Jim Harbaugh scheduled for later in the week. All of these interviews have been known about for a few days. However, it was also previously reported by CBS Sports’s Josina Anderson that Bill Belichick was expected to be the Falcons’ next head coach. Later reports called him the team’s top candidate. Atlanta owner Arthur Blank may be having second thoughts after two interviews with the former Pats boss. If the Falcons end up going in a different direction, it’s unclear where or even if Belichick will coach in the 2024 season.

According to Russini, Belichick had dinner with members of the Falcons’ organization on Thursday night and has “more meetings to come.” This aligns with a previous report from CBS Sports’ Jonathan Jones, who said Belichick is expected to have a second interview with the Falcons on Friday, where he will speak with owner Arthur Blank, CEO Rich McKay, president Greg Beadles, and GM Terry Fontenot. At this point, it would be more surprising if Belichick didn’t get the job, as it appears the two sides are closing in on a deal that could be finalized at any moment. Belichick is the only coaching candidate who is reported to have received more than one interview with the Falcons at this time.