Tom Brady's former head coach 'very surprised' at Bill Belichick considering non-NFL job

The 2025 NFL coaching carousel is expected to be a feisty one. At present, three franchises are in desperate need of a new head coach - New York Jets, New Orleans Saints, Chicago Bears. That number could very well balloon up to five or even eight if things go sideways for the likes of Jacksonville Jaguars and Dallas Cowboys.

Serial Super Bowl winner Bill Belichick was expected to be a coveted name in 2025. However, it appears Belichick could choose to go another way altogether. The Patriots legend is currently in talks with the University of North Carolina to take over its program. Belichick's UNC links raised eyebrows across the board as many expected him to land a job this summer.

Tom Brady's former team, Tampa Bay Buccaneers' Super Bowl-winning head coach, Bruce Arians, was among the NFL personalities who believed Belichick would land an NFL job. On Dianna Russini's "Scoop City" podcast this week, Arians said:

“I was very surprised. I thought for sure he’d wait for the NFL hiring process to play out.”

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Bill Belichick makes first public comments on UNC rumors

The "Pat McAfee Show" garnered plenty of views on Monday afternoon after Bill Belichick made his weekly appearance on the show. The former Patriots head coach wasn't exactly open to discussing the opportunity with UNC but made his thoughts clear on what the job would entail.

"If I was in a college program, the college program would be a pipeline to the NFL for the players that had the ability to play in the NFL," Belichick said. "It would be a professional program - training, nutrition, scheme, coaching and techniques that would transfer to the NFL.

"I’ve had the opportunity to talk to Chancellor Roberts and we’ve had a couple of good conversations. So we’ll see how it goes.”

Rumors also indicate that Steve Belichick could follow his father to UNC. However, one man who would rather not have Belichick at the helm is NFL legend Julius Peppers, who has publicly come out in support of Steve Wilks for the job.

Wilks has reportedly interviewed for the job. He coached the Cardinals in 2018 and also served as the Panthers' interim head coach, going 6-6.