Bill Belichick Breaks Silence on New England Patriots Ban

Earlier this week news broke that North Carolina banned New England Patriots scouts from the team's facilities.

"[General manager Michael] Lombardi and Tar Heels pro liaison Frantzy Jourdain informed the Patriots that they would be banned from UNC the day before one of their scouts was scheduled to visit in August," ESPN reported this week.

The Patriots appear to be the only team banned, but other NFL teams have found it difficult to get in contact with the Tar Heels.

"Two NFL scouts who work for other teams told ESPN that North Carolina, under Belichick's leadership, offers limited access to all NFL personnel," ESPN reported. "Clubs are allowed to speak only with Jourdain, and UNC's college relations website says that 'scouts will have zero access to coaches or other personnel people,' according to the scouts."

Patriots Coach Mike Vrabel Responds to Ban

Not long after the news broke, Patriots head coach Mike Vrabel was asked about the ban.

"That's an individual choice and we'll cross that bridge when we start looking at players," Vrabel said earlier this week. "I'm going to focus on our football team. That's their prerogative to make the decisions that they feel like are the best for them. We'll have to find other ways to get the information for any players that we want to look at at North Carolina."

Bill Belichick Finally Speaks on Ban

More than 48 hours after the news broke, Belichick opened up on the decision to ban Patriots scouts from access to his players and coaches. Following the team's first win of the season, a 20-3 victory over Charlotte, the Tar Heels head coach confirmed the ban.

"Yeah well you know it's clear I'm not welcome at their facility, so they're not welcome at ours. It's pretty simple," Belichick said bluntly.