The only two teams still looking for a coach have signaled they aren’t interested in Belichick. Both the Washington Commanders and Seattle Seahawks are onto their second round of interviews with candidates, and neither met with Belichick the first time around.
Why has it gone this way? It was always going to take the right scenario. Belichick is expected to want more than $20 million per year, which is more than many owners want to pay a head coach. He’s also 29-38 since Tom Brady left New England. And he runs things differently than most after serving as both head coach and de facto general manager for so long with the Patriots. At a time when many owners are seeking collaboration, it’s understandable some would be reluctant to hand total power over to one man.
So it’s looking more and more like Belichick, who has been chasing Don Shula’s all-time wins record (he’s 15 shy of overtaking him), might not be an NFL coach in 2024 for the first time in 49 years. His wait for another head-coaching job — if he still wants one by then — could continue into 2025.
[Does he want another gig, though? If he really wanted a spot, Belichick would have dialed down his salary and control expectations. He seems to have priced himself for a market that doesn’t exist. One has to wonder whether he was just delusional, or whether he wants to push that concept to get a bigger price for a media position, where Belichick still has real value as an analyst. — Ed]
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