Albert Breer shares what he’s hearing about Bill Belichick’s communication with the Jets before taking the job at UNC
It's hard to believe Bill Belichick would ever coach the New York Jets.
The Jets were one of Belichick's biggest rivals during his 24-year tenure as head coach of the New England Patriots. Belichick also was critical of Jets owner Woody Johnson after New York fired head coach Robert Saleh in October.
Belichick ultimately landed a new job as head coach of the North Carolina Tar Heels last week. But before that deal was finalized, he made his interest in the Jets' head coach job known, according to Sports Illustrated's Albert Breer.
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"What I heard was that Bill did indeed reach out to (former Jets general manager) Mike Tannenbaum," Breer said Sunday on NBC Sports Boston show Patriots Pregame Live, as seen in the video player above. "Tannenbaum was a little stunned but brought it back to the Jets' front office people, and they mulled it. And they were working to set up a conversation between Belichick and Woody Johnson.
"But by then, the conversation between Belichick and North Carolina had escalated. Bill needed answers from the Jets. The Jets, of course, weren't prepared to give him answers because they have to go through a full process. So the timing didn't really work out.
"The other thing I can tell you is I know at least one other team that has an opening didn't hear from Belichick. So it's not like Bill was calling around to everyone. So there was something he liked about the Jets situation. I think the relationship with Tannenbaum probably helps and, you know, there is a trust there that's been established.
"This was a real thing. I do think it illustrates that Bill at least wanted to make sure that the door was closed on the NFL for right now before he jumped into the college ranks."
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Belichick was once briefly the Jets head coach in 2000 before resigning and joining the Patriots.
It worked out pretty well for the Patriots, who won six Super Bowl titles in Belichick's 24 seasons as coach. The Jets, meanwhile, haven't won a Super Bowl since 1969 and their last playoff appearance was in 2010.
The Jets have been a mess for a long time, and their roster is not set up for a quick turnaround in 2025. For that reason, and others, it's a little surprising that Belichick showed interest in the job.
Now Belichick's focus will be on improving a Tar Heels program that went 6-6 in the 2024 college football regular season and has only one bowl game win over the last decade.
