Many people are curious as to why Bill Belichick, who is perhaps the best coach in NFL history, chose to become Chapel Bill by accepting a college position at North Carolina rather than trying to rejoin the NFL following this season.
Ultimately, the six-time Super Bowl champion is only 14 victories away from Don Shula’s all-time NFL coaching record of 247.
Adam Schefter of ESPN reports that Belichick, who turns 73 in April, would rather have the security of the five-year contract he signed at the ACC school than the uncertainty of a new NFL contract.
The Jets, New Orleans Saints, and Chicago Bears are the only three head coaching positions open at the present, but Schefter said that number could rise to about seven following the season.
He said on Thursday on SportsCenter, “There was a chance that Bill Belichick would have landed a head coaching job in this upcoming head coaching cycle, but there was no certainty about that.” “If we go back to last offseason, the NFL had a chance to hire Bill Belichick, and every team that had an opening bypassed that opportunity.”
Bill Belichick chose the certainty of a coaching position at the collegiate level over the uncertainty of waiting to see if he was hired as an NFL coach because North Carolina offered certainty and because the college game was becoming more like the professional game in terms of being a business, with Name, Image, and Likeness money, and players transferring for money.
Bill Belichick is fundamentally a coach, and that is what he wanted to do. It may have happened, but it may not have.
Some amusing prop bets have already been placed on “Chapel Bill via@BetOnline_agpic.twitter.com/suQdRiUPIx.”
When asked if Belichick, who never played or coached Division 1 football while attending Division 3 Wesleyan University (Conn.), would have been considered for an NFL opening in 2025, Belichick was connected to the Falcons and Commanders the previous season, but he was not hired, Schefter noted.
Belichick, Bill “He is the best coach of all time,” he remarked, adding, “I’m sure I would have been considered for some of those jobs [in 2025].” It’s unclear, though, if he would have been hired for one of those positions.
He went on to say, “I don’t think Bill Belichick had faith that it would work out in his favor, and he took the bird in the hand because he is intrigued by the college game rather than waiting and seeing if it does or doesn’t happen.”
Belichick’s father, Stephen, was a former college coach, and Schefter noted that one of his favorite coaches was Paul Brown, who won four high school national titles in the 1930s and 1940s, a college national championship at Ohio State in 1942, and seven professional championships, including three with the Cleveland Browns in the NFL.
Paul Brown is currently being reversed by Bill Belichick, according to Schefter. After winning his professional football trophies, he is returning to college to see how successful he can be there.
On Pardon the Interruption Wednesday, NFL Hall of Famer Troy Aikman stated that he thinks Belichick will succeed at North Carolina, which is known for its basketball programs, and that he has heard that Bill’s son, Stephen Belichick, will be the coach-in-waiting.
No matter where he goes—to college, the professionals, or anywhere else—I believe he’ll succeed because his record speaks for itself, he added.
Based on what I’ve heard, I assume that his interest in this college position was sparked by the possibility that his son would be the head coach-in-waiting.
Aikman nevertheless expects that Bill Belichick will return to the NFL in the future to attempt to surpass Shula’s record.
“I would have to believe that that’s really important to him,” Aikman said, adding that he is just 14 victories away from reaching Don Shula.
Being at the top of that list would be highly commendable for him and everything he has accomplished, as we all know he is a history maker in the NFL. I hope that if he accepts the position in North Carolina, he will eventually return to the NFL and have the chance to overtake Don Shula and top that list.
Adam Zagoria works as a freelance journalist for NJ Advance Media, covering Seton Hall and college basketball in New Jersey. You may visit his website at ZAGSBLOG.com and follow him on Twitter at @AdamZagoria.
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