Bill Belichick draws parallel between NFL and college football as ex-HC considers UNC job

Former NFL coach Bill Belichick is currently not coaching. After he and the New England Patriots mutually parted ways following the 2023 season, questions arose about his future at age 72.

Belichick had received some interest from NFL teams this offseason, such as the Atlanta Falcons, but ultimately, never landed a gig. Last week, Belichick was interviewed for the North Carolina Tar Heels' head coaching vacancy, with reports indicating the talks went well.

On Monday's edition of "The Pat McAfee Show," Belichick drew parallels between the landscape of the NFL and the NCAA with how different things have changed in the last few years with NIL deals, the transfer portal and players having more leverage.

"I think there are a lot of football programs that are being structured similar to NFL programs," Belichick said. "So in college, you now have high school recruiting, but you have college portal in pro football, you have the draft and pro free agency, so you have salary cap and negotiations with NFL agents.

"In college, you have negotiations with whoever represents the player, whether that's a family member, a high school coach, an agent or some other financial advisor or whoever it is. You have players changing teams in college as you have players that could change teams in the NFL with a little different set of rules but the same general structure. And you have to value your players in some way, because you have a limited amount of money."

It's expected that a decision will be made sometime this week. UNC needs an answer, as the transfer portal opened on Monday. Landing Belichick could certainly help them get players in the portal.

Bill Belichick said he's had a "couple of good conversations" with UNC

Bill Belichick during Michigan v Washington - Source: Getty

On Friday, multiple news outlets confirmed that Bill Belichick interviewed for North Carolina's vacant head coaching position.

On "The Pat McAfee Show," Belichick said he had a "couple of good conversations" with UNC chancellor Lee Roberts.

In regards to landing at UNC, Belichick said:

"We'll see how that goes. We'll see. We'll see."

If Belichick doesn't accept the UNC coaching position or isn't offered, he could still pursue coaching in the NFL.

Many have him as a possible candidate to take over as the Jacksonville Jaguars (after/if they fire Doug Pederson) or the New York Giants' next head coach (after/if they fire Brian Daboll.)

Where do you think Bill Belichick will be in 2025?