Patriots Legend Bill Belichick's Strategy With UNC Job Revealed

New England Patriots head coach Bill Belichick has interviewed for the North Carolina Tar Heels job, but how real is his interest?

Jan 11, 2024; Foxborough, MA, USA; New England Patriots former head coach Bill Belichick holds a press conference at Gillette Stadium to announce his exit from the team. Mandatory Credit: Eric Canha-Imagn Images / Eric Canha-Imagn Images

Former New England Patriots head coach Bill Belichick interviewed for the North Carolina Tar Heels head-coaching job, which certainly caught many by surprise.

A six-time Super Bowl champion taking a job for an ACC school? What?

But perhaps this is also just a song and dance for Belichick?

A source has told Jonathan Jones of CBS Sports that Belichick's "interest" in North Carolina may be more of a signal to NFL teams than anything else.

"It signals to NFL teams I have a lot of energy. That I'm not ready to shut it down," the source said.

Belichick is 72 years old and has not coached this season, so you can understand why some teams would have trepidation about whether or not he would have enough left in the tank to take on another job.

But that may not be the sole reason behind Belichick being unemployed. Well, at least in terms of a head-coaching job, anyway.

The game has certainly changed, and there had been discussions on whether or not Belichick would be able to adapt, especially considering how rough his last couple of years in New England went.

Not only that, but some have also wondered if Belichick would again want autonomy wherever he goes, as he was the Patriots' general manager in addition to being head coach.

But a source has told Jones that the legendary coach "doesn't care about full control."

That being said, you can see why an owner (or a general manager) would feel a bit uncomfortable with Belichick entering an organization given the cachet that he carries.

He spent 24 years as Pats head coach and led them to nine Super Bowl appearances as well as 17 AFC East division titles.

Belichick is widely regarded as one of the best coaches in NFL history.

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