There has been some question about whether, at age 72, and turning 73 in April, legendary NFL coach Bill Belichick really wants to get back on the sideline next year. He's old for a coach by any measure, probably wants more control over an organization than most owners want to give and did not come to a particularly successful end during his time with the Patriots.
The fact that Belichick has become tabloid fodder, too, for dating a woman in her 20s has been taken as a point against his return to the grind of coaching. After all, Belichick has a much less demanding schedule and much more affable disposition as a media member these days.
But then again, he is a coaching lifer who sits at 302 career wins, 26 behind Don Shula for most of all time, and 16 behind George Halas for No. 2 in history. Presumably, he could catch Shula in three seasons at the helm of a decent team, and for a coach as steeped in the history of the game as Belichick, that matters.
At Pro Football Talk, the ever-conspiratorial Mike Florio suspects that Belichick was laying the groundwork for one potential suitor this week when he spoke about the Tampa Bay Buccaneers during his "ManningCast" appearance during Monday night's game between the Chiefs and Bucs.
The Bucs fan site, JoeBucsFan.com, highlighted a quote from Belichick in which he praised GM Jason Licht, who worked for the Patriots during Belichick's tenure.
"Jason did a great job for me. He's really a great evaluator, a really smart guy," Belichick said.
"He's done a great job putting the Bucs together. And then, you know in [2022 and 2023,] they were kind of down a bit, it looked like they were rebuilding, got Mayfield and a lot of young players in there. And here they are playing really competitively again. So he's done a tremendous job. I really enjoy Jason. He's a great guy to be around. You know, he's really done a great job with that franchise."
For Florio, something there smells amiss. He noted that Belichick's, "comments from the Buccaneers-Chiefs game has prompted speculation in some circles that he has his eye on the Tampa Bay job."
The Bucs have a good coach on hand, Todd Bowles, though injuries could cause them to underachieve.
As Florio sees it, Belichick's approach this seaosn is to create the widest possible market for his services. "It's possible that Belichick is interested in coaching the Buccaneers next year. Or, more generally, that he's hoping to maximize his options in order to generate the most possible leverage.
"Jacksonville, Tampa Bay, Dallas. Where else? The more, the merrier for Belichick.
"Regardless, Belichick doesn't say anything accidentally," Florio wrote.
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