Former Patriots Member Already Set to Join Bill Belichick at UNC

Legendary former Patriots head coach Bill Belichick has found his new home and one former staff member already has plans to follow him to North Carolina.

Long-time NFL executive Michael Lombardi will become the Tar Heels' general manager of football while Belichick serves as the coach. The two will work in tandem to rebuild the program and it'll be interesting to see how the duo tackles the challenges of the college football landscape.

Lombardi served as assistant to the coaching staff from 2014-2016. Belichick sang his praises at the time, making this pairing a logical choice.

Former Patriots Assistant Michael Lombardi Joins Bill Belichick at UNC

Exact contract details for Lombardi have not been revealed. Belichick signed a five-year, $50 million deal, so it's logical to assume Lombardi's contract is for a similar length.

More former Patriots are likely to follow Belichick once the dust settles. Regardless, Wednesday's news represented a dramatic likely conclusion to Belichick's NFL career. It was long thought that he'd get one more job to try to become the league's all-time win leader.

Instead, no NFL job materialized for the man considered to be the greatest coach in history, forcing him to go to the college ranks. There is a different environment at the collegiate level now with the infusion of NIL and transfer portal. Lombardi will largely help navigate those challenges for Belichick, who presumably will focus purely on the football side of things.

After a long career in various front offices, Lombardi spent time with the 49ers, Browns, Eagles, Raiders, and Broncos including the Patriots. He served as UNLV's recruiting coordinator in the 1980s but otherwise held college jobs.

Belichick and Lombardi are obviously comfortable with each other. While Lombardi didn't find success during his front office stints at the NFL level, perhaps this can be the perfect marriage to improve that track record.

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