The Evil Empire Could Be Coming to the NFC in 2024
After almost a year of rumors that 2023 could be Bill Belichick’s final season of coaching the New England Patriots, it finally came to fruition on Thursday morning.
Ian Rapoport of NFL Network reported that Belichick will be leaving New England this offseason and will coach elsewhere in 2024. As a result, the Evil Empire could be headed to the NFC this season.
The Evil Empire Could Be Coming to the NFC
Rapoport tweeted on Thursday morning, “The #Patriots are moving on and so is the greatest coach of all time. Bill Belichick won’t be New England’s coach in 2024, per me and @TomPelissero, as his celebrated 24-year tenure, one that included 6 Super Bowl wins, is over. A new era awaits.”
This decision continues what has been a stunning series of coaching moves over the past few days, including Pete Carroll being fired by the Seattle Seahawks and Nick Saban retiring from the Alabama Crimson Tide on Wednesday.
Prior to that, Mike Vrabel was let go by the Tennessee Titans on Tuesday after a 54-45 record over six seasons, including an AFC Championship Game appearance back in 2019.
While Belichick’s stint in New England is over, it does not appear that he is done coaching.
Following the report that Belichick would be leaving the Patriots, Adam Schefter of ESPN tweeted, “Bill Belichick will want to continue coaching and is expected to draw interest from at least some of the other seven NFL teams that currently have head coach vacancies, quite possibly the Atlanta Falcons, per league sources.”
Belichick’s career with the Patriots will go down as one of the most dominant coaching runs in NFL history. Over his 24 years in New England, he helped New England earn nine AFC Championships and six Super Bowl titles.
Now, it appears that Belichick will be a candidate to take on one of the seven vacant NFL head coaching positions. Four of these open spots lie within the NFC (Atlanta, Carolina, Seattle, Washington), and if Schefter’s report is true, the Falcons may be amongst the favorites to land him.
The Falcons went 7-10 this season and still need to figure out a long-term plan at the QB position, but that team is loaded with oodles of talent on the offensive side of the ball. Over the past three years, Atlanta has selected Kyle Pitts, Drake London, and Bijan Robinson in the top-10.
Atlanta is once again slated for a top-10 pick, currently holding the eighth overall pick in the 2024 NFL Draft. If they land Belichick and a top QB in the first round, the Falcons could be a dangerous squad next season.
The Falcons and Vikings are slated to face off next season inside U.S. Bank Stadium, but we won’t find out when that game will take place until the official schedule release later this spring.
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Josh Frey is a Class of 2020 graduate of The College of Idaho and managing editor of PurplePTSD.com. When he’s not writing about the NFL, Josh enjoys running, gaming, or rooting for the Milwaukee Brewers and Bucks. Check out his Twitter account: @Freyed_Chicken.