North Carolina coach Bill Belichick has said of his new job, “I didn’t come here to leave.” His contract, however, makes it very easy to leave.
After June 1, 2025, the buyout plummets from $10 million to $1 million. As noted on Sunday, that term wasn’t randomly generated. It was specifically negotiated.
To his credit, Jim Gray went there in the latest Let’s Go! podcast with Belichick.
Specifically, Gray asked Belichick about the buyout, and whether it means he has left the door open to depart.
Said Belichick: “Jim, you know I don’t discuss contracts.”
That makes sense when the contract is secret, as his NFL contracts always were. In this context, it’s a copout.
Belichick’s UNC contract is public information. And it shows that he negotiated and received a ridiculously affordable buyout clause, as of June 1, 2025. It’s fair to ask how that term reconciles with his predictable vow (for recruiting purposes) to never, ever leave.
Gray nevertheless asked Belichick whether he left the door open to return to the NFL.
“No, I’m here at North Carolina,” Belichick said. “I want to be at Carolina, and I’m excited about being at Carolina.”
That’s fine. But why the cheap buyout? For as long as he refuses to explain it, we’ll continue to believe it’s there for a reason.
The reason is obvious. Someday, he might decide to use it.
