NFC team offered job to Bill Belichick

Nov 10, 2023; Frankfurt, Germany; New England Patriots head coach Bill Belichick speaks to the media before an NFL International Series practice at the Deutcher Fussball-Bund facility. Mandatory Credit: Nathan Ray Seebeck-USA TODAY Sports

There’s an alternate reality wherein Bill Belichick joined forces with Kyle Shanahan on the San Francisco 49ers to make a coaching tandem for the ages. Shanahan apparently tried to make that happen in this universe.

Shanahan appeared on Tuesday’s episode of “The TK Show” hosted by The Athletic’s Tim Kawakami. The Bay Area reporter asked the 49ers head coach if he had spoken to Belichick this offseason. Shanahan admitted that he tried his luck to recruit the coaching free agent but got turned down.

“I did. I threw it out to him,” Shanahan said when asked about Belichick. “He loves football so much that you never know. … I threw it all out to him, like whatever he’d want to do. I was like, would you be interested? He was very nice and appreciative but he politely turned me down. … I’m sure he’s going to be back in the league next year. I could be going against him, it could be in the NFC West. … I mean he’s the best, and I just like talking to him.”

Kyle Shanahan to @timkawakami on if he spoke with Bill Belichick this offseason about joining the 49ers:

“I did. I threw it out to him. He loves football so much that you never know. … I threw it all out to him, like whatever he’d want to do. I was like, would you be…

— Ben Volin (@BenVolin) July 23, 2024

Shanahan added that he is “sure” that Belichick will be back on an NFL coaching staff next season in some capacity. Shanahan predicted that the the 8-time Super Bowl winner could even be coaching against him in the NFC West.

However, an NFC team from a different division seems to be the betting favorite to land Belichick’s services.