One of the things discussed at the NFL owners meetings last week was the way head-coaching jobs are handled for teams that make the playoffs.
Under the current rule, coaches cannot officially accept new jobs until their team is eliminated from the playoffs. This means this past year Josh McDaniels couldn't officially become the head coach of the Colts until the Patriots were eliminated from the playoffs, which actually benefited New England, as the extra time allowed him to change his mind and ultimately stay with the Patriots.
A new rule was proposed where coaches could sign with a new team and then continue to coach their previous team through the playoffs.
According to MMQB's Peter King, 10 coaches spoke at the owners meetings last week about it and nine supported keeping the rule the way it is.
One of the biggest supporters of keeping it the way it is was Bill Belichick.
A source told King: "Bill said, 'We work hard to get to the playoffs. We tell our fans we're doing everything possible to win the biggest games of the year, and we do everything to eliminate distractions. And then, in the middle of that, we announce one of our coaches is now the new coach of another team? And he's going to coach for us until the end of the year?' Bill also made a very good point about being employed by two teams at once. 'If you've been hired by one team, you're continuing to coach your original team, and you talk to some of the assistant coaches you work with about joining your staff—shouldn't that be tampering?'"
The new rule did not get passed.
