Former Patriots star responds to Bill Belichick, Jets report

Three-time Super Bowl champion and current NFL analyst Devin McCourty played under head coach Bill Belichick with the New England Patriots from 2010 through the 2022 season and, thus, knows plenty about Belichick's supposed feelings regarding the New York Jets. 

During the latest edition of the "Eye on Foxborough" podcast, McCourty addressed a report that revealed Belichick reached out to the Jets about their head coach opening before he agreed to become the new coach of the North Carolina Tar Heels. 

"The first thing that popped up in my mind was, he just cared about coming back to Foxborough and trying to beat up on the Patriots," McCourty said, as shared by Karen Guregian of MassLive. "But second, from the Patriots' twisted mind of hating the Jets, how funny would it be next year if the Jets are bad, and all we see are articles: 'Well, Bill Belichick did reach out. And he tried to go there, and you said no, and that’s why you still suck.' So there are so many angles to think about. But I could not imagine him being the Jets head coach. I couldn’t see that."

Belichick famously resigned as New York head coach in January 2000 without having ever coached a game for the franchise and has since made it known that he's not all that fond of Jets owner Woody Johnson. In fact, it was suggested before Belichick accepted the North Carolina gig that he would advise former Tennessee Titans head coach/former Patriots player Mike Vrabel against taking the Jets job.

However, The Athletic's Dianna Russini shared that "a very small circle of people in the Jets building were made aware of [Belichick's] interest" in potentially working for the organization. Russini added that "no meeting or formal conversation ever happened because the UNC opportunity popped up." 

"As much as Jets fans hate him, they would have loved to have him in their building just to give payback to the Patriots. Everything about that would have been interesting," McCourty said. "It would have made for one of the best 'Hard Knocks.' Everything they could have done with that, we would have needed as much behind-the-scenes footage as possible."

McCourty was referencing how Patriots owner Robert Kraft showed Belichick the door last January and may or may not have been "a big part" of why teams such as the Atlanta Falcons passed on hiring the 72-year-old during the offseason. As much as Belichick tortured Jets fans during his New England tenure, many of those same supporters would have welcomed him as a savior amid Gang Green's ongoing 14-year streak without a playoff appearance.