The New York Post said Belichick personally reached out to the Jets — a surprising development considering the coach’s strained relationship with the franchise.

After displaying a well-known hatred towards the Jets over the years—and also going 39–13 against them during his NFL career—Bill Belichick recently called New York about its vacant head coaching job. According to CBS Sports' Jonathan Jones, Belichick himself called the team "to gauge interest" and was told they were just starting their search.

A person familiar with the situation told The Associated Press that Bill Belichick contacted the New York Jets about their head coaching vacancy before accepting the job at North Carolina.