Arthur Blank and the Atlanta Falcons reportedly welcomed Bill Belichick for a second interview despite having no plans to hire him.
“The Falcons’ second interview was granted to Belichick ‘largely out of respect,'” ESPN’s Don Van Natta Jr., Seth Wickersham, and Jeremy Fowler revealed in a wide-ranging bombshell on Wednesday.
Blank allegedly enjoyed interacting with the former New England Patriots coach during Belichick’s first interview on the owner’s superyacht. ESPN stated that Blank even left the meeting believing he had identified his future head coach.
Blank’s “top lieutenants,” including CEO Rich McKay, general manager Terry Fontenot, and team president Greg Beadles, reportedly opposed hiring Belichick. Because, while Belichick supposedly stressed to Blank that he only wanted to coach, others in the Falcons front office believed that Belichick would eventually want to lead the franchise.
ESPN said that Blank’s top lieutenants pushed back against Belichick, which convinced the longtime NFL owner. Blank reportedly had a chat with Patriots owner Robert Kraft, who provided a “stark assessment” of Belichick’s character.
Belichick was reportedly listed behind at least three other candidates, including Raheem Morris, who ultimately accepted the head coaching position, Mike Macdonald, and Bobby Slowik.
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