Patriots' Matthew Judon pleads with NFL teams about Bill Belichick

New England Patriots linebacker Matthew Judon believes teams that had head-coaching vacancies this offseason may regret not giving former New England head coach Bill Belichick opportunities to win one of those jobs. 

"I would say, 'Hire that guy,'" Judon said about Belichick during a recent appearance on the NFL Network "Good Morning Football" program, per Nick O'Malley of MassLive. "He’s going to be great for the organization. He’s going to be great for the team." 

Patriots owner Robert Kraft and Belichick "mutually" agreed to part ways in January after the franchise failed to reach the playoffs for a third time in four seasons and after New England finished the 2023 campaign at 4-13. 

By all accounts, the Atlanta Falcons were the only club that strongly considered hiring Belichick this winter, but Falcons owner Arthur Blank ultimately chose former Los Angeles Rams defensive coordinator Raheem Morris. 

While it was suggested in February that questions about Belichick's "ability to relate to this generation of players" could keep him from landing a coaching gig down the road, it was later reported that multiple team owners could target the six-time Super Bowl champion head coach in January 2025. 

Judon acknowledged during the show segment that he experienced more than just sunshine and rainbows inside the New England locker room when Belichick was essentially running that organization. 

"It might not be too many smiles you get out the dude," Judon added about Belichick. "It might not be too many laughs and jokes you might get out of him with the media and stuff. The press, you might have some pushback on that. But I think as a hire, as a head coach, it's hard to get better as a head coach."

Washington Huskies defensive coordinator Steve Belichick revealed last month that his famous father was "pursuing other stuff" such as a temporary job with one of the NFL's media partners. 

Media insider Andrew Marchand of The Athletic reported on Wednesday that Peyton Manning's Omaha Productions and ESPN could both feature Bill Belichick during the upcoming season. Marchand added that "all networks will take a meeting with" Bill this spring "if he wants one." 

Judon said he thought his former head coach could spend time with a team working as "an analyst or something behind the scenes" this year. 

There's no indication the living legend, who turns 72 years old in April, is interested in accepting a role similar to the one currently held by Tampa Bay Buccaneers senior advisor Bruce Arians.