Bill Belichick contacted the New York Jets about their head coaching vacancy before accepting the job at North Carolina, according to a person familiar with the situation.
The 72-year-old Belichick was introduced Thursday as North Carolina’s football coach. But the former New England Patriots coach recently reached out to the Jets, who fired Robert Saleh on Oct. 8 and installed defensive coordinator Jeff Ulbrich as the interim coach.
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There were no meetings or formal discussions between Belichick and the Jets, according to the person, who spoke to The Associated Press on Saturday on condition of anonymity because neither side commented publicly about the situation.
The Athletic first reported the contact between the sides, and the New York Post said Belichick personally reached out to the Jets — a surprising development considering the coach’s strained relationship with the franchise.
Belichick has recently been critical during television appearances of owner Woody Johnson and the Jets, who are 3-10 and will miss the playoffs for the 14th straight season — the NFL's longest active drought. The team is also searching for a general manager after Johnson fired Joe Douglas on Nov. 19.
Belichick was an assistant on coach Bill Parcells’ staff with the Jets from 1997 to 1999, and was in line to become New York’s head coach when Parcells stepped down. But Belichick instead decided to resign after just one day to pursue the same job in New England. A trade was eventually worked out and Belichick ended up with the Patriots, with whom he won six Super Bowl titles with quarterback Tom Brady.
In 2007, then-Jets coach Eric Mangini — a former assistant under Belichick — helped initiate the Spygate scandal during which Belichick and the Patriots were fined by the NFL for illegally videotaping signals by Jets coaches during a game.
Belichick agreed to leave the Patriots after last season, ending one of the most successful head coaching tenures in NFL history. His 333 career regular-season and postseason wins trail only Don Shula’s 347, and his 31 playoff wins are the most in league history.
Belichick interviewed last offseason for the Atlanta Falcons’ job, but was out of the NFL this season.
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