Bill Belichick says he has no plans to leave his new job as the head coach at North Carolina, but his star QB from his old job in New England is reportedly trying to change his mind.
The Las Vegas Raiders fired their head coach, Antonio Pierce, on Monday after only one year on the job. Tom Brady is a minority owner of the Las Vegas franchise and a member of the selection committee tasked with finding the Silver & black’s next head coach.
According to NFL Media’s Tom Pelissero, Brady is among many others seeking his old head coach to become the Raiders’ new frontman.
“Multiple NFL teams have inquired about whether legendary coach Bill Belichick would reconsider his move to college football – including the Raiders, whose new minority owner Tom Brady spoke recently with his old coach, per league sources,” Pelissero wrote on X.
How complicated would it be for Brady or any NFL team to steal Belichick away from UNC before he’s coached even one game? It wouldn’t be complicated at all; it would just take money.
“Bill Belichick’s UNC contract includes a $10 million buyout if he leaves prior to June 1, 2025, though it’s not entirely clear whether it would apply if he returns to the NFL in the coming weeks,” Pelissero explained.
To be clear, $10 million is a small sum for an NFL franchise and is in no way prohibitive. If Belichick finds a team that wants him, they will happily pay that to get the coaching legend back in the game.
One would think the Raiders would be an attractive landing spot for Belichick. He would have an ally in ownership with Brady, and, as a student and historian of the game, he may relish the opportunity to return the Raiders to the former glory they enjoyed in Belichic’s younger years. However, Las Vegas doesn’t have a franchise quarterback and doesn’t have a draft pick that will net them either Shedeur Sanders or Cam Ward, so he would have to really want that job.