NFL rumors: Bill Belichick, Falcons connection turns from simmer to a rolling boil

Hell has frozen over, as the Atlanta Falcons are another step closer towards hiring Bill Belichick to be their next head coach. Belichick had spent the entire 21st century up to his point transforming the New England Patriots from the AFC equivalent of the Falcons into the Evil Empire. While he had a rough go of it after Tom Brady left the team in 2020, a reinvigorated Belichick could be on the horizon.

Up to this point, Atlanta has either interviewed or is about to interview roughly a dozen head-coaching candidates. Although hotshot coordinators like Ben Johnson and Bobby Slowik still need to see their teams be eliminated from the NFL playoff picture first, those are two candidates who will probably fill a pair of the seven current head-coaching vacancies. It is all about timing for Atlanta...

Belichick met with Falcons owner Arthur Blank last week, who later interviewed Michigan head coach Jim Harbaugh. Atlanta also interviewed Las Vegas Raiders interim head coach Antonio Pierce. I expect he will be promoted from within very soon, and that will leave us with six head-coaching vacancies. It remains to be seen what the Philadelphia Eagles want to do with Nick Sirianni this week.

Not to say this is a shocking development, but Atlanta is getting a second interview with Belichick.

To me, this is all about one thing and one thing only. Addressing the Rich McKay problem, head-on...

NFL rumors: Bill Belichick to have a second interview with Atlanta Falcons

Clearly, Belichick is not done coaching. He still wants to break Don Shula's all-time wins record, as well as try his best to match Brady's seven Lombardi Trophies. Of the handful of places where Belichick could fit, Atlanta has to be on the shortlist. He wants a talented, but underachieving team that just cannot get over the hump for the life of them. Atlanta is that, and so are a few other teams.

While I think the Dallas Cowboys would have been a great landing spot for him, Jerry Jones is clearly content with mediocrity going forward until the day he dies. Why else would you bring back the buffoon in the rain that is Mike McCarthy after his latest, and perhaps greatest, playoff disaster in Big D? Philadelphia would make sense for Belichick too, but the downside of failing there is far too risky.

Thus, it really comes down to one of two teams for Belichick: Atlanta or the Los Angeles Chargers. The Bolts have the better quarterback right now in Justin Herbert, but Atlanta can easily draft one inside the top 10. Atlanta has the No. 8 overall pick for the third year in a row. Honestly, it is going to come down to ownership, and I would side with Blank over Dean Spanos in just about every way.

While it may come down to control above all else, Blank is more equipped to give Belichick the resources he needs to achieve success in Atlanta. Spanos will cut corners financially to actively undermine the entire thing. If it came down to a bidding war, Atlanta will beat out Los Angeles. Of course, McKay could be the stick Atlanta shamelessly shoves into its own spokes to topple over.

There may be another candidate or two Atlanta has a second interview with, but Belichick is big!