Breer: Why the Jaguars could be the ideal destination for Belichick Originally appeared in NBC Sports Boston
After failing to land a head coaching job in the offseason, Bill Belichick can sit back and wait for an intriguing opportunity to present itself during or after the 2024 campaign.
The six-time Super Bowl champion should top the list of potential replacements for teams with head coaches in their sights. speculation that Belichick will land in the NFC East, Sports Illustrated’s Albert Breer believes a return to the AFC with the struggling Jacksonville Jaguars would be an ideal fit for the former New England Patriots head coach.
“I look at where they are, they finished last year 1-5, now they’re 0-3, so they’re 1-8 in their last nine games,” Breer said of the Jaguars on Tuesday. Early edition“If you look at their schedule going forward, it’s set up in such a way that they’ll play the Texans and the Colts, and then they’ll go to England. They could be 0-5 in England if they lose to the Texans and the Colts. They’ll play the Bears and the Patriots in England.
“Depending on what (Belichick) thinks of Trevor Lawrence, the quarterback is there. It’s close to one of his residences in South Florida. And Shad Khan, to some extent, is an absentee owner. He’s not there much. So (Belichick) could run the business there. He has a relationship with Shad’s son, Tony.”
According to Breer, Jaguars leaders have followed Belichick’s advice in the past and would likely be willing to give him the control over the organization he desires.
“I think this is a detail that maybe not a lot of people know. When they hired Doug Marrone in 2017, they did so largely on the advice of Bill Belichick,” Breer said. “The Khans heard from Bill Belichick that they should hire Marrone, so clearly Bill has the owners’ attention there as well.”
“So I certainly think it’s a place where if Bill was looking at the football situation, like, ‘Can I have control? Are they going to run things my way? Am I going to be able to bring in my own general manager? Is there a quarterback there?’ I think it’s a good situation.”
While the Jags may be a perfect fit for Belichick, replacing Doug Pederson midseason if Jacksonville’s struggles continue doesn’t seem likely. NBC Sports’ Boston Patriots insider Phil Perry recently said that Explained in early edition Why Belichick is unlikely to return to coaching in 2024.
That said, it will be hard to turn down Jacksonville if it offers him the head coaching job in 2025. The Dallas Cowboys, New York Giants and Chicago Bears are also among the potential opportunities that could entice Belichick in the offseason, if not before.
Until then, Belichick will have several media jobs to keep him busy. The 72-year-old currently serves as a football analyst for the The Pat McAfee Show, Manning casthis COACH podcast and the Come on! podcast.