Every NFL observer has settled into the fact they won't see Bill Belichick roaming a sideline this year for the first time in five decades.
Perhaps everyone is surprised to see him on Instagram.
The future Hall of Fame coach joined the photo app this past week as part of a continued and, according to sources, focused media blitz as he prepares to wear a headset as a head coach again in the 2025 season.
"The media thing has a couple different angles for him, because everything he does is strategic," said one executive who worked for years with Belichick in New England.
In addition to Instagram, Belichick will appear on Sirius XM, various ESPN shows and platforms, a show with Underdog Fantasy, the CW's "Inside the NFL," and he's working as a strategic adviser with The 33rd Team.
Infamous for his terse press conferences and gruff demeanor with the press, Belichick will now be seen and heard across various platforms and channels throughout the entire NFL season for several reasons.
"I look at it in three parts," said the executive. "He's laying foundation for his second career. He won't be someone who just retires. Football is what he's done his entire life. If he doesn't get another [job], he's set for stage two of his career.
"The second part is getting out in front and letting people see who he is and show a different side of his personality, how he interacts with people and how smart he is when it comes to football. It's an open interview almost every week.
"The third part is gathering intel and information. Making sure he doesn't lose a step in terms of knowing the league, teams and players. In his mind I'm sure he doesn't want to have a gap year and doesn't want to have had no clue on what's going on in the league. That's how the media thing serves him."
Sources tell CBS Sports that Belichick conducts regular conference calls and Zooms with associates with whom he has worked in years prior during this gap year. Those calls mostly cover trends around the league that inform Belichick for his media gigs as well as keep him in the loop as the coaching hiring cycle nears.
Last year there were six head-coaching vacancies (excluding the Patriots.) Only the Atlanta Falcons interviewed Belichick, who met twice with the team and owner Arthur Blank before Blank went with Raheem Morris.
Belichick plans to be omnipresent this season as he keeps tabs on the entire league. Another source familiar with Belichick's thinking told CBS Sports that because he spent so long with one organization, Belichick wants to explore other ways of thinking.
"It's an opportunity for a renaissance," another source said. "He's saying, 'Maybe I need to do this a little better. Maybe I don't need to do this as much.'"
The belief around the league is Belichick, who will be 73 years old at the start of next season, would only coach between two and four seasons. That would potentially give him enough time to break Don Shula's all-time wins record and cement his status as the greatest coach of all time.
Interestingly, the Pro Football Hall of Fame changed its rules in the offseason regarding the wait time for coaching candidates. Coaches can now be inducted into Canton after one year of being out of the game, which would make Belichick eligible for a 2026 induction.
But there are no plans for Belichick, an eight-time Super Bowl champion assistant and head coach, to sit out another year and be eligible by 2026. If it's up to Belichick, Canton can wait.
