NFL insider is ‘expecting’ Bill Belichick will be named Falcons head coach after 2nd interview
"Things are ramping up with the greatest coach of all time"
The Atlanta Falcons will interview Bill Belichick for a second time, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL Media.
“Sources: Former #Patriots coach Bill Belichick will have a second interview with the #Falcons brass this weekend after meeting with owner Arthur Blank 1-on-1 this past week. Things are ramping up with the greatest coach of all time,” wrote Rapoport.
Atlanta has an opening for a head coach after firing Arthur Smith. Belichick and the Patriots parted ways last week.
About an hour after Rapoport’s report, CBS Sports’s Josina Anderson tweeted that she expects Belichick to be named Falcons head coach.
“Barring a snag in negotiations or a future development (still have to get a signature), I’m expecting Bill Belichick to become the next head coach of the NFC South* Atlanta Falcons,” Anderson wrote. “His previous rapport with #Falcons CEO Rich McKay creates comfort he can’t mimic in any other building with a current vacancy. Owner Arthur Blank is very skilled at being convincing and selling the benefits of coming to Atlanta—as I learned from Calais Campbell.
“The GM dynamic in Atlanta is presumably more palatable for Bill in Flowery Branch than it would be in Philly, and as mentioned both sides have been talking about this through for a while; thus my previous reports. I expect Belichick to reunite with some members of his former staffs whenever he makes it official.”
The Falcons announced Belichick’s first interview on social media. They also announced that they interviewed Jim Harbaugh, who coached Michigan to a College Football Playoff National Championship win earlier this month.
According to CBS’s Jonathan Jones, Belichick’s meeting with Blank lasted “for hours.” A group of Falcons executives are expected to be included for the next meeting, Jones reports.
The Falcons went 7-10 and lost four of their last five games.
The Cowboys had been mentioned as a potential landing spot for Belichick, but announced on Wednesday that they are sticking with Mike McCarthy as their head coach. There has also been speculation that the Chargers and Commanders could get involved.
Belichick was with the Patriots for 24 seasons before the decision to move on was made. The last time he worked for another franchise was in 1999 when he was an assistant on Bill Parcells’s Jets staff.
During Belichick’s final press conference, Patriots owner Robert Kraft said it would be tough to see the 71-year-old coach working elsewhere.
“It will be difficult to see him in a cutoff hoodie on the sideline, but I will always wish him continued success, except when he’s playing our beloved Patriots,” Kraft said.
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