Cowboys remain Bill Belichick's top option as former Patriots HC fails to land Falcons job: Report

Bill Belichick ended his legendary run as the New England Patriots head coach during the 2024 NFL offseason. He has won six Super Bowl rings and nine conference championships in over two decades. Many around the NFL believed that he would quickly find a new coaching job, but it didn't play out that way.

The Atlanta Falcons emerged as his most likely destination after they fired Arthur Smith and interviewed Belichick twice. Owner Arthur Blank instead hired Raheem Morris as their next head coach. With all of the vacancies now full, it doesn't appear that Belichick will be a head coach during the upcoming 2024 NFL season.

Rumors are that this could be the end of his coaching career. But he is reportedly connected to the Dallas Cowboys for a potential return next year. Mike McCarthy has failed to find the consistent postseason success Jerry Jones has been seeking. So he may pivot to Belichick if the Cowboys don't make a deep playoff run this season.

"On paper, the Cowboys seem 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." - per a recent report from ESPN.

McCarthy is entering the final year of his contract ahead of the 2024 NFL season. This means that even if Jones had been looking to make a change for next season, he wouldn't need to fire McCarthy. He could sign Belichick with no financial penalty for doing so.

Considering Jones has consistently claimed that he will go all-in to win another Super Bowl ring, the move could make sense. No coach in NFL history has won more of them than Belichick. It would be interesting to see if the two can co-exist in leadership roles.

Bill Belichick may have less power with the Cowboys than the Patriots

Bill Belichick

Bill Belichick enjoyed a uniquely powerful position with the New England Patriots. He was given the rare luxury of serving as their head coach and the general manager. This allowed him to control almost all of the roster and personnel decisions.

The issue with potentially joining the Dallas Cowboys is that he is unlikely to have the same power that he has probably become used to. Jerry Jones is the only owner in the entire NFL who also serves as his team's general manager.

Jones has always refused to share the power of executive decisions. It would be interesting to see if he makes an exception for Belichick.