There will be a Bill Belichick-sized shadow over the NFC East this upcoming season.
After being shut out from a coaching gig this offseason after parting ways with the Patriots, Belichick has told “confidants” he has interest in potentially leading the Giants, Cowboys and Eagles, according to ESPN.
Among those teams, one friend of Belichick told the outlet they believe the Cowboys represent Belichick’s only path back to a head-coaching role.
Belichick reportedly has told those close to him he expects to land at least one interview during the next coaching hire cycle.
“I don’t think Bill Belichick will ever be a head coach again in the National Football League,” the friend said. “Unless it’s [for] Jerry Jones.”
That Belichick has his eyes on three of the four teams in the NFC East is an especially intriguing nugget since it’s fair to say those three teams are facing critical 2024 seasons.
Let’s start with the Giants, facing a pivotal Year 3 in the Brian Daboll/Joe Schoen regime.
The Giants made the playoffs during the 2022 season but suffered through a disappointing 2023 that lost some of the goodwill accumulated during the previous season.
They are preparing for a potentially franchise-altering pick in this year’s draft in which they must decide whether to select a quarterback.
Belichick has previously shared his affection for the Giants after serving as a defensive coordinator for two of their Super Bowl-winning teams.
The Cowboys and Eagles both were rumored as potential fits for Belichick this offseason but ultimately stayed with their respective coaches.
Dallas owner Jerry Jones decided to stick with coach Mike McCarthy after yet another disappointing postseason, and McCarthy is likely coaching for his job this season in the last year of his contract.
Belichick and Jones are “decades-long friends,” according to ESPN, and Belichick would make sense for a win-now roster.
Some bad blood between Patriots owner Robert Kraft and Belichick could also give the former coach reason to want to join Jones in Dallas.
“And Belichick told a friend that he liked the idea of sticking it to the Krafts by working for Jones,” according to the ESPN roster.
Eagles owner Jeff Lurie and general manager Howie Roseman are also both described as “fans” of Belichick, with Lurie asking a confidant about Belichick’s status this offseason, per the report.
Belichick would have been interested in that opening, according to ESPN.
Roseman and Belichick chatted this offseason, although a source told the outlet the talk did not veer into any discussion about joining the Eagles.
“The Eagles still felt he had his fastball,” ESPN wrote.
Ultimately, the Eagles decided to stick with coach Nick Sirianni.
Sirianni led Philadelphia to the Super Bowl just two seasons ago but authored a collapse after a 10-1 start last season that ended with a wild-card loss to the Buccaneers.
The organization had some concerns about how much overhaul would be needed for Belichick.
“You’ll have to start over again,” a source told ESPN. “Who would replace him? He hasn’t had a good record of developing coaches. They were afraid that he’ll have changed everything and every person, and [then] you’ll be starting from scratch again. He didn’t demand those changes, but they felt like, if we hire him, we have to give everything to him and trust how he does it.”
While the one confidant said they believe Dallas is Belichick’s best path to a job, the Eagles and Giants seemingly are higher on the 72-year-old’s list.
“Belichick has told confidants that he hopes if a team in the northeast has an opening, it will consider him,” the article stated. “That way, key former assistants who live in the region, such as (Matt) Patricia and (Josh) McDaniels, will be able to join him with minimal family disruption. But in the end, if he works, or where, or how much power he is granted, won’t be up to Belichick.”
