Sep 18, 2022; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA; New England Patriots head coach Bill Belichick looks on from the sidelines against the Pittsburgh Steelers during the second quarter at Acrisure Stadium. The Patriots won 17-14. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports
Bill Belichick reportedly has a shortlist of team options for the 2025 coaching carousel. However, he doesn’t appear to have much leverage for his next job search. An ESPN report by Don Van Natta Jr., Seth Wickersham, and Jeremy Fowler detailed Belichick’s job search this winter.
The New England Patriots and Belichick mutually parted ways this offseason following several frustrating years after Tom Brady left for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Belichick used up all of the grace afforded to him after winning six Super Bowls in two decades.
Bill Belichick doesn’t have much leverage
2022: Patriots head coach Bill Belichick look on after a Bears interception in the fourth quarter in which the Bears won, 33-14.
Per the report, Belichick was stunned at how hard the job market was for him this offseason. It didn’t help matters that Patriots owner Robert Kraft talked poorly behind Belichick’s back to Atlanta Falcons owner Arthur Blank.
Belichick wants to test the job market out for the 2025 season. He wants to coach in the NFC East:
[Belichick] is believed to be biding his time until next January for openings on teams he has told confidants he would be interested in coaching: the Dallas Cowboys, Philadelphia Eagles and New York Giants. A source who spoke with a longtime friend of Belichick said the friend wonders if the coach will have another opportunity: “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.”
The Philadelphia Eagles are concerned about Belichick’s future longevity in the sport. General manager Howie Roseman doesn’t want to hire Belichick to coach for two more seasons and then restart the hiring process for 2027. One would assume the New York Giants would feel the same way.
The Dallas Cowboys are Belichick’s best option
Aug 26, 2022; Arlington, Texas, USA; Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones and son Stephen Jones walk on the field before the game against the Seattle Seahawks at AT&T Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kevin Jairaj-USA TODAY Sports
The Dallas Cowboys are a different animal. Per the ESPN report, Cowboys owner Jerry Jones, like Belichick, will be in “win-now mode” for the 2025 season. The two have a history of interest, but Jones wanted to stick with Mike McCarthy for the 2024 season:
Dallas was another potential suitor. On paper, the Cowboys seemed to make sense: Belichick and Jerry Jones are decades-long friends, and both are in win-now mode. Nobody is better than Belichick at converting a talented roster into a championship team.
And Belichick told a friend that he liked the idea of sticking it to the Krafts by working for Jones. But Jones, for all his flash, bluster and vows this offseason to go “all-in,” is change-averse when it comes to head coaches. He decided quickly after Dallas’ blowout exit in the wild-card round to let Mike McCarthy coach the final year of his contract.
Will Belichick coach in Dallas?
2017: Bill Belichick celebrates after Super Bowl LI where the New England Patriots vs The Atlanta Falcon at NRG Stadium, Houston.
Belichick prefers staying on the East Coast because his top choices for assistant coaching positions live there. But he might not have a choice if Dallas is the only option for him. Belichick and the Cowboys make sense. But will the two stubborn and aging NFL legends agree to team up with less leverage after the 2024 season?
