Bill Belichick Was Asked About Michael Lombardi Being Placed On Leave

North Carolina GM and longtime Bill Belichick associate Michael Lombardi was recently played on administrative leave by the university.

by Tzvi Machlin

Jul 31, 2026

North Carolina Tar Heels general manager Michael Lombardi and Bill Belichick.

North Carolina GM and longtime Bill Belichick associate Michael Lombardi was recently played on administrative leave by the university. Naturally, the Tar Heels head coach was asked about it.

But if there's one thing that Bill Belichick has consistently been throughout his tenure as a coach, it's short with the media. To nobody's surprise, that trend remained in place this week.

At the start of his first news conference since the Lombardi announcement was made, Belichick stated that he would not be addressing the matter. He vaguely alluded to complicated things happening behind the scenes but that was it.

"We're working through some things," Belichick said. "We're at a particular time of the year now where there are certain things that are in play, and certain things that are in play that will happen later in the calendar year. So we're taking it day to day and work through the things that are on the table right now."

North Carolina in 2026

Belichick and Lombardi have worked together off and on since the 1990s, when Belichick was head coach of the Cleveland Browns and Lombardi was a personnel executive. They would reunite in New England from 2014 to 2016 with Lombardi serving as the "assistant to the coaching staff."

But while their prior tenure together included two Super Bowl wins, things have gotten off to a brutal start in North Carolina.

Jul 17, 2026; Charlotte, NC, USA; North Carolina head coach Bill Belichick talks with the media during interviews at Hilton Charlotte Uptown. Mandatory Credit: Jim Dedmon-Imagn Images

Last year Belichick mustered just a 4-8 record with the Tar Heels, finishing with one of the worst offenses in the nation and getting blown out in more than half of their losses. After the sky high expectations that Belichick placed on the team with his hiring, his inability to even deliver the team to a bowl game has many already calling him one of the worst hires in college football history.

Belichick has dealt with scandal after scandal - some benign, but some serious - and it's placed a bit of a cloud over the Tar Heels with just one month until they kick off against TCU.

Can Belichick weather the storm and lead North Carolina to a better season in 2026?