Bill Belichick Says He’s ‘Been Asked’ About Vacant New York Giants Head Coach Job but He’s ‘Focused’ on UNC

Bill Belichick says he’s staying focused on his job at North Carolina despite speculation that he’d be interested in coaching the New York Giants.

Belichick, 73, told reporters at his weekly press conference on Tuesday, Nov. 11 that he’s aware of the buzz and hinted that players have been asking him about whether he’d go back to the NFL, in the wake of Giants head coach Brian Daboll’s firing on Monday.

“I’ve been asked about it from time to time,” Belichick told reporters after being asked what message he’d like to send to his team amid the speculation. 

“Look, I’ve been down this road before,” Belichick continued. “I’m focused on Wake Forest, that’s it. That’s my commitment to this team. This week it’s Wake Forest, next week it’s that opponent and so forth. I’m here to do the best for this team.”

The six-time Super Bowl-winning head coach has been thought to be in the mix for nearly all head coaching positions that have opened up in recent years, since he and New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft mutually announced Belichick was leaving his longtime team in January 2024.

Belichick has history with the Giants, having previously worked as the team’s defensive coordinator and helping them win two Super Bowls alongside head coach Bill Parcells in 1987 and 1991. The future Pro Football Hall of Fame coach began his head coaching career the next season with the Cleveland Browns. Belichick took the head coaching job at New England in 2000, where he led the Patriots to six Super Bowls alongside quarterback Tom Brady.

Second on the list of most all-time wins as a professional football coach, Belichick has had a tougher experience at the collegiate level since joining the Tar Heels in December 2024 amid off-the-field drama surrounding his 24-year-old girlfriend Jordon Hudson and her increased involvement in his professional career.

As Belichick and the Tar Heels trudge through a disappointing first season together, speculation has also continued to spread that both sides are looking to part ways less than one year into his five-year deal worth $10 million per season.

Belichick has denied the rumors, however.

“I’m fully committed to the UNC Football program we’re building here,” he said last month.

Last week, Belichick again said rumors that he’d leave UNC and return to the NFL were “just a bunch of garbage.”

North Carolina is scheduled to play Wake Forest on Saturday at 3:30 p.m. ET, with Belichick on the sidelines and with three games remaining in the 2025 season.