NFL Return Still Possible For Bill Belichick?

Head coach Bill Belichick‘s first season with the University of North Carolina hasn’t gone well. While the Tar Heels entered the weekend on a two-game winning streak, that ended with a 28-12 loss to Wake Forest on Saturday. They’re now 4-6 with two games left. North Carolina will need to close out its regular season with wins over Duke and North Carolina State just to gain eligibility for a bowl game.

If we’re to believe Belichick, he’s committed to North Carolina, which signed him to a five-year, $50MM contract with the first three seasons guaranteed. Before the Wake Forest loss, Belichick took to Instagram on Friday to shoot down any potential interest in the Giants’ head coaching position or any other NFL vacancy that could open up in the next couple of months.

While the six-time Super Bowl-winning head coach may not sound eager to return to the pros, “at least one team has done very initial homework on Belichick and the situation at North Carolina,” Tom Pelissero of NFL Network says. Pelissero adds that Belichick’s Instagram statement may have been issued in part to reassure recruits, and it doesn’t mean he’ll reject NFL interest if teams seeking a head coach come calling in January.

Belichick’s name came up in connection to NFL vacancies last winter, but he didn’t interview with anyone. That came a year after Belichick was a serious candidate to take over as Atlanta’s head coach. The position instead went to Raheem Morris, leaving Belichick “surprised and embarrassed,” according to Pelissero.

Belichick’s pursuit of the Falcons job was public knowledge. Now, if he does come back to the NFL, it’s going to occur “in the dark of night,” Pelissero reports. It wouldn’t be a public process. An interested team would go through the league-mandated protocol before offering its HC job to Belichick.

Along with the Giants, who moved on from Brian Daboll last week, the Titans fired their head coach (Brian Callahan) earlier this season. They and other franchises that dismiss their HCs between now and January will consider a slew of candidates. Belichick would carry a better resume than any other potential hire, but it’s very much in question whether anyone will show major interest in the soon-to-be 74-year-old.

In the event Belichick does make an improbable NFL comeback, it would renew his chances of chasing down Don Shula as the all-time wins leader among head coaches. Between his 29 years with Cleveland and New England, Belichick amassed 302 wins. Shula piled up 329 victories in 33 years between the Colts and Dolphins. Belichick trails only Shula and Bears legend George Halas (318 wins in 40 years) on the all-time list.