The Falcons may be second-guessing their pursuit of Bill Belichick
Expected to be the hottest free agent on the head-coaching market, Bill Belichick has interviewed with just one team since parting ways with the New England Patriots.
The Atlanta Falcons have spoken with Belichick twice regarding their head-coaching vacancy, but the team may now be pumping the brakes in its pursuit of Belichick, according to Peter King of NBC Sports.
“The Falcons must be thinking, ‘If we hold Belichick in high regard, why does no other team?’” King wrote. “He’s had no other interviews, at least not any we know of. It’s weird. Maybe teams sniffing around coaches don’t think hiring a soon-to-be 72-year-old guy regardless of resume is such a good idea.”
ESPN’s Adam Schefter echoed the same sentiment during his appearance on “The Pat McAfee Show” on Monday morning.
“Why would there not be more teams that are interested in Bill Belichick?” Schefter said. “It’s just odd to me. It was odd with Brady [when only two teams were interested in him when he was a free agent], it’s odd with Belichick.”
Multiple reports over the last week-and-a-half indicated that Belichick to Atlanta was all but a done deal.
However, the team has cast a wide net in its search for Arthur Smith’s replacement, interviewing 12 candidates in addition to Belichick including:
- Baltimore Ravens defensive coordinator Mike Macdonald
- Baltimore Ravens assistant head coach Anthony Weaver
- Buffalo Bills offensive coordinator Joe Brady
- Carolina Panthers defensive coordinator Ejiro Evero
- Cincinnati Bengals offensive coordinator Brian Callahan
- Detroit Lions offensive coordinator Ben Johnson
- Detroit Lions defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn
- Houston Texans offensive coordinator Bobby Slowik
- Los Angeles Rams defensive coordinator Raheem Morris
- Michigan Wolverines head coach Jim Harbaugh
- Philadelphia Eagles offensive coordinator Brian Johnson
- San Francisco 49ers defensive coordinator Steve Wilks
Atlanta is also scheduled to interview former Tennessee Titans head coach Mike Vrabel on Wednesday, per ABC TV’s Zach Klein.
“I believe we’ve all assumed Belichick was going to get a high-quality job, or at least, in the case of the Falcons, a decent job,” King added. “Now the question is: Will he get one at all? Seems the Falcons are open to opening up this search after two meetings with the six-time Super Bowl champion head coach.”
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