With Bill Belichick officially named North Carolina football’s next coach, the rebuild in Chapel Hill has started.

The Tar Heels hiring Belichick is a seismic moment in college football, as one of the greatest coaches in NFL history will look to rebuild UNC’s program ‘his way’ or in a ‘professional way.’ UNC has not won the Atlantic Coast Conference since 1980 and hasn’t recorded double-digit wins since 2015.

It’s a rebuild that, of course, will include potential home visits, offering NIL packages and utilizing the transfer portal — compared to the free agent market that he utilized as the Patriots general manager during his time in the NFL.

On top of the Tar Heels’ contractual commitment to Belichick (five years/$50 million), North Carolina is expected to invest a significant amount of money into the football program from Belichick’s staff and the program’s NIL budget. As reported by USA Today Sports’ Matt Hayes, the Tar Heels’ NIL budget is expected to go up from $4 million to $20 million.

Belichick and UNC’s ‘honeymoon period’ won’t last long as with the transfer portal already open, the six-time Super Bowl coach will have to hit the ground running and perhaps play some catch-up. This, of course, will include re-selling the program to those of the Tar Heels that have already entered the transfer portal.

With Belichick’s hiring at North Carolina, the Tar Heels coach becomes the country’s oldest active college football coach at 72.

So, who might Belichick and Co. bring in as their first recruiting class? Here’s the latest updates surrounding UNC football’s involvement in the transfer portal as Belichick takes over in Chapel Hill:

UNC football transfer portal updates

This section was last updated on Monday, Dec. 16 at 1:30 p.m. ET

Amare Campbell stays at UNC

Belichick has retained another Tar Heel, who entered his name into the portal before his arrival. Campbell finished with 72 total tackles, six ½ sacks, two broken-up passes and a forced fumble this past season at UNC.

Austin Blaske withdraws from transfer portal

UNC football incoming transfers

This section will be updated as UNC and Belichick receive commitments from players in the transfer portal

PHILADELPHIA — Nick Sirianni believes in player-coach confidentiality, so the Philadelphia Eagles head coach will never reveal what he said to Eagles defensive lineman Jalen Carter as defensive line coach stood Clint Hurtt stood between them on the sideline during the team’s 27-13 victory over the Pittsburgh Steelers on Sunday.

Carter, the No. 9 overall pick in 2023, was flagged for unsportsmanlike early in the fourth quarter for smacking the helmet of Steelers tight end Connor Heyward as Pittsburgh punted. Luckily for the Eagles, the refs determined Carter’s illegal play came after the ball was punted, so the Eagles did not lose a chance to regain possession.

‘He made a play that is not part of our standard, so my job is to correct that,’ Sirianni said after the game. ‘Regardless of what it is, we’re going to correct the things that we need to do better and praise the things we need to do well.’

As Sirianni – who is wont to show emotion on the sideline – dressed down Carter, Hurtt stepped between the two and didn’t let the head coach get closer to the former Georgia Bulldog. Eagles’ chief of security Dom DiSandro was also on the scene.

‘In that moment, that’s what that was. I love Jalen Carter. I love what he brings to this football team. ,’ Sirianni said. ‘Right there, he needed to be smarter in that situation because it could have given them the ball back. It didn’t give them the ball back, but it could have. So, we’re going to need to get better at that.

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‘That’s what you do as a coach.’

The Eagles actually never let the Steelers regain possession of the ball and ended the game on a final drive that lasted 10:29.

Carter knocked down a pass and recorded two tackles as the Eagles rolled to a 10th straight victory.

‘Again, he played a good game, and I’ll watch the game to see how good of a game he played, but we need him to be better in that scenario and be the consistent player he’s been for the entire year,’ Sirianni said.

No, Jared Goff. The sky is not falling on the Detroit Lions. At least not yet. 

The Lions had their NFL-best 11-game winning streak snapped by the Buffalo Bills and electric quarterback Josh Allen in a classic shootout at Ford Field on Sunday. For all the firepower the Lions have as the NFL’s most prolific offense in putting up points, they met their match and couldn’t keep up in the NFL’s highest-scoring game of the season. 

Bills 48. Lions 42. 

Momentum halted. Balloon popped. Gasket blown. 

Yet all it will take for the Lions (12-2) to hang onto the No. 1 seed, earn a first-round bye and seize home-field advantage for the NFC playoffs is another streak – as in winning their final three games. With that, the sky might still be Honolulu Blue. 

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Then again, with the injury-stung defense losing three more players on Sunday and the Lions offense now taking a major hit with the loss of sparkplug running back David Montgomery to a season-ending knee injury, the sky looks rather black and blue.

Lions coach Dan Campbell announced Monday that Montgomery will undergo surgery for a torn MCL. Tough break, Detroit. As if the rash of injuries to the defense that entered Week 15 with 13 players on injured reserve wasn’t enough.

“We acknowledge the fact we’ve lost players, we’ve lost really good players, but nobody cares,” Campbell said on Monday. “I mean, nobody cares and nobody’s gonna give us a pass or give us an asterisk next to (our) record. So, what it means is that some guys are gonna have an unbelievable opportunity.”

This, while the Lions try to come to grips with their first loss since Week 2.

“I’m sure there will be a ton of stuff written about the sky falling,” Goff said on Sunday. “We had won how many in a row. It sucks to lose. We would have loved to win every game out, all the way through the Super Bowl. I hope we can look back on this one as a good learning lesson for us and move on.” 

It would have been totally understandable if Goff went home and immediately packed his throwing arm in ice. The ninth-year pro threw a season-high 59 times. Against a Bills secondary without three injured starters, Goff also hit season highs for yards (494) and touchdown passes (5). 

But this came in a game when the Lions logged just 15 rushes and fell into an early hole because the Bills (11-3) started hot by scoring touchdowns on their first three drives. 

Did somebody mention a lesson?

Well, take your pick.

The last time the Lions lost, against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Goff threw 55 times. So, no, that is not the desired formula. Yet Detroit’s 59-15 pass-run ratio against the Bills, which can be easily skewed when trying to rally from huge deficits, wasn’t the imbalance that should concern the Lions the most. 

They passed because they had to. And they had to because the battered defense – which lost three more players on Sunday – was so overmatched. 

For weeks, Detroit’s defense has been so short-handed. Its best player, defensive end Aidan Hutchinson, suffered a broken tibia and fibula in mid-October. Defensive end Marcus Davenport (triceps) and linebacker Alex Anzalone (broken arm) have missed much of the season, too.  

Yet with defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn creatively crafting schemes to cover for the setbacks – Detroit entered the matchup ranked third in blitz rate (32.2%), according to Pro Football Reference – the Lions kept on winning. 

Then came Sunday, when on top of being unable to contain Allen (the third quarterback in the past 30 years to pass for at least 250 yards with two rushing TDs in the first half), more losses were piled on with injuries. 

Cornerback Khalil Dorsey suffered a gruesome leg injury that coach Dan Campbell said was similar to Hutchinson’s and ends his season. And after Sunday’s game, Campbell braced himself for the bad news that was confirmed on Monday. Defensive tackle Alim McNeill suffered a torn ACL. Veteran cornerback Carlton Davis III has a fractured jaw.

“No excuses,” Campbell said, courageously. 

Sure, the NFL is a war of attrition. Every team in the league is dealing with injuries. Yet Detroit’s defense has had more than its share, which was only further exposed by the Bills. 

No, it’s not the first unit to be shredded by Allen, the MVP front-runner who spread the football around to nine targets in passing for 362 yards on Sunday and was never sacked. If he wasn’t converting on throws after rolling out of the pocket to extend plays, he was lethal with his legs. Again. Designed sweeps. Improvised scrambles. Misdirection power runs. 

Yet it wasn’t just Allen that the defense couldn’t contain as Buffalo rushed for 197 yards. James Cook (14 rushes, 105 yards) and Allen combined to average 6.9 yards per carry. It’s no wonder that Buffalo balanced its attack with 34 rushing attempts and 34 passes. 

In any event, the defense’s struggles illuminated the enormous pressure on Goff’s unit. After trailing by 21 points early in the third quarter, the Lions trimmed the deficit to 10 points and then to the final six-point margin. But that was more a reflection of grit and resilience than it was an indication that they would seize control of the game. 

And it underscored the reality of a challenge that will escalate when the competition stiffens in January. Balance wins in the playoffs. Complementary football matters. When the defense gets a stop, the offense converts it into points. Or so goes the idea. 

Defense wins championships? Well, until further notice Detroit, averaging an NFL-high 32.8 points per game, needs to be carried by an offense that makes the other teams play catch-up. And despite the presence of star receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown, scatback Jahmyr Gibbs and others, even that will be suddenly tougher with Montgomery slated for surgery.

Failing a litmus test against Buffalo wasn’t the worst outcome. Detroit still holds the No. 1 seed. Yet the key question about whether the Lions formula can hold up for a championship run was amplified, given the state of an injury-battered defense that can’t be counted on for stops.

Of course, Campbell, known for his aggressive game management decisions, pointed to something else that had nothing to do with the defense being short-handed. He grumbled about the intensity. As pesky as the Lions were in the fourth quarter, they had to play catch-up for the entire game. Not easy with that defense. 

The coach blamed himself for not having his team playing with urgency from the start. It was the proverbial team punched in the mouth, dazed as it processed what hit it. 

The Bills won’t be the only team capable of inflicting such pain if the Lions, who advanced to an NFC title game meltdown last season, hope to beat the best competition and take it a couple of steps further this time around. 

Lesson? 

“Maybe it’s a good wake-up call for us and a nice little recalibration for us,” Goff said. 

Either that or a reality check. The formula is a bit out of whack. 

“Now what are we going to do about it?” Campbell said. “We won’t sit there and feel sorry for ourselves.” 

After all, the sky isn’t falling. At least not yet. 

This story has been updated with new information.

With each passing week, the NFL playoff picture is getting clearer and clearer. Week 15 was no exception.

The AFC saw two more teams clinch postseason berths. The Houston Texans wrapped up the AFC South by virtue of their 20-12 win over the Miami Dolphins and the Indianapolis Colts’ 31-13 loss to the Denver Broncos while the Pittsburgh Steelers sealed a spot thanks to the latter result.

The NFC side of the bracket was a bit quieter. No teams clinched playoff berths outright, but the Philadelphia Eagles and Minnesota Vikings both gained on the Detroit Lions in the race for the No. 1 seed. Additionally, the Washington Commanders took a step forward in the wild-card race.

It’s also becoming clearer that several teams, like the Buffalo Bills and Baltimore Ravens, will be difficult to beat in the postseason. As long as Josh Allen and Lamar Jackson continue to play at a high level, both teams will represent a significant threat to the Kansas City Chiefs, especially with Patrick Mahomes dealing with yet another late-season ankle injury.

Here are the winners and losers from Sunday of Week 15.

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WINNERS

Bills affirm status as Super Bowl contenders by beating Lions

The Bills already beat their top AFC rival, the Chiefs, earlier in the season. Now, they have also beaten the team many believe to be the NFC’s best, the Lions.

Buffalo earned a 48-42 victory over Detroit in a game during which it jumped out to an early 14-0 lead. Allen had yet another great performance, throwing for 362 yards and two touchdowns while adding 68 yards and two more touchdowns on the ground. Meanwhile, James Cook had 105 yards and two touchdowns on 14 carries, along with a run that was emblematic of the Bills’ toughness throughout the 2024 NFL season.

Cook found open space on a run up the middle, but it appeared that he was about to be pulled down in a very painful way: by his hair. Instead, Cook somehow managed to break the tackle, retain his speed and fly into the end zone for the score.

The Bills are still a game back of the Chiefs in the AFC standings, but they are establishing themselves as an offensive buzz saw that few will want to play in January. If they can somehow overtake the Chiefs and make the road to the Super Bowl run through Buffalo, their cold-weather, home-field advantage could have a chance to make it to the big game for the first time since 1994.

The Vikings’ standing in the NFC North race

Minnesota has been excellent during the 2024 NFL season, but few have given them a legitimate chance to win the NFC North because of how good Detroit has been.

Now, the door is open for the Vikings to finally catch the Lions. The Vikings are just a half-game back of the Lions in the NFC North standings entering their ‘Monday Night Football’ matchup with the Chicago Bears. If they win, they will set up a frenetic three-week stretch during which they will battle for control of the division with the Vikings.

Detroit will still have an upper hand on Minnesota in the divisional race. The Lions are ahead 1-0 in the head-to-head tiebreaker over the Vikings and have a 4-0 divisional record compared to the Vikings’ 2-1 mark.

But if the Lions trip up at any point in the final three games of the season, the Vikings could come away with an unexpected NFC North title.

Lamar Jackson’s MVP chances

Jackson is facing an uphill battle to unseat Josh Allen in the NFL MVP power rankings down the stretch. He is doing everything possible to erase the Bills quarterback’s advantage.

Jackson had another terrific game in Baltimore’s 35-14 decimation of the New York Giants. After fumbling on his first carry, Jackson was nearly flawless, completing 21 of 25 passes for 290 yards while adding 65 yards on six carries.

Granted, the Giants were significantly undermanned on defense and sport an NFL-worst 2-12 record after Sunday. Still, New York did a decent job bottling up Derrick Henry, which put more pressure on Jackson to perform at a high level. He delivered, logging a near-perfect passer rating (154.6) during the contest and producing a plus-23.7 passing EPA.

More importantly, the Ravens are once again within striking distance of the Pittsburgh Steelers in the race for the AFC North title after Pittsburgh’s loss to the Eagles. The Ravens are just one game back of the Steelers entering their pivotal Week 16 clash.

The Aaron Rodgers/Davante Adams connection

It didn’t start out that way. In the first half against the Jacksonville Jaguars, Adams failed to log a reception while the Jets scored just seven points.

After halftime? Rodgers found Adams nine times. The veteran receiver turned those nine catches into a whopping 198 yards and two touchdowns, including a 71-yarder and two-point conversion that gave the Jets a three-point fourth-quarter lead.

Adams ended up accounting for about two-thirds of Rodgers’ passing production from the quarterback’s 289-yard, three-touchdown day in the 32-25 win. It may ultimately be lost in what has been a disappointing Jets season, but at least the two former All-Pros proved they still have something in the tank as they head toward an uncertain future in 2025.

LOSERS

Lions’ chances at home-field advantage

Let’s not pretend as though the Lions are in trouble after losing to the Bills. What Detroit fans should be worried about, however, is the possibility of losing home-field advantage.

The Eagles and Lions are now tied for the No. 1 seed in the NFC with the 11-2 Vikings not far behind. The final three weeks of the season will now be all about those three teams jockeying for position in the NFC standings.

But if the Lions lose out on the No. 1 seed to the Eagles, they may ultimately lament losing a game in which they scored 42 points.

The Chiefs’ offensive line struggles continue as Patrick Mahomes suffers injury

Kansas City entered the season with an unsettled situation at left tackle. That has lingered into Week 15, and the offensive front had a rough showing against the Cleveland Browns.

With D.J. Humphries ruled out due to a hamstring injury, the Chiefs moved starting left guard Joe Thuney out to left tackle for the game. While he held up relatively well against Myles Garrett, the team still surrendered pressure on 54% of Mahomes’ dropbacks, per ESPN’s Seth Walder. Mahomes didn’t take any sacks, but the Browns racked up 12 quarterback hits during the contest.

Worst of all was Mahomes’ final hit of the game. The pocket collapsed around him on a fourth-and-3, and while he got the ball out of his hands, he was hit hard, both high and low, after the play.

Mahomes limped off the field after the play and didn’t return to the contest. His ankle is ‘not broken, but it is sore,’ per head coach Andy Reid, while NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport reports that Mahomes is expected to be ‘week-to-week’ because of the injury.

That was good news for the Chiefs. Still, their offensive tackle play remains a problem and could ultimately be what prevents the team from competing for an unprecedented Super Bowl three-peat.

The Dolphins’ playoffs chances – and record against winning teams

Miami entered Week 15 with a 16% chance to make the playoffs in the AFC, per The Athletic. Those chances took a significant hit after the Dolphins’ 20-12 loss to the Houston Texans.

Miami’s playoff hopes are now on life support, and the Dolphins can blame their inability to beat winning teams for their issues. They are just 1-5 against teams with a winning record in 2024 compared to a 5-3 mark against teams that are .500 or worse.

As such, Mike McDaniel will likely have to spend the offseason pondering how the Dolphins can be better against playoff contenders to become one themselves.

Jonathan Taylor’s pre-goal-line drop – and the Colts’ playoff chances

The Colts appeared to take a big step toward a road upset of the Denver Broncos when Taylor broke a run that looked like it was going to be a touchdown.

However, Taylor did something that NFL players do all too often. He tossed the ball to the ground to celebrate his score – before he had crossed the goal line.

Taylor’s gaffe proved costly for the Colts. They would have gone up two possessions after his touchdown regardless of the extra point attempt. Instead, the Broncos recovered the ball and remained just six points down.

The play swung momentum in favor of the Broncos, who scored 24 unanswered points to earn a 31-13 victory. The Colts’ loss allowed the Texans to clinch the AFC South and kept Indianapolis two games back of the Los Angeles Chargers in the AFC wild-card race with just three games left to go.

PHILADELPHIA – T.J. Watt limped toward the tunnel that leads to the visitor’s locker room at Lincoln Financial Field Sunday in the final minutes of the Pittsburgh Steelers’ 27-13 loss to the Philadelphia Eagles. 

With three games in 11 days, against two more of the NFL’s best teams, both in their own conference, the Steelers may be doing the same into the postseason. 

“Very frustrating, especially this late in the season,” Watt said about the loss, adding that he rolled his ankle and will undergo further testing to determine his status for the team’s next game in six days against the Baltimore Ravens. 

A win would secure the AFC North for Pittsburgh. The Steelers play 96 hours after that on Christmas Day against the Kansas City Chiefs for a total of three games in 11 days. The combined record of those three opponents is 34-8. 

“We’re not afforded a lot of time,” defensive lineman Cam Heyward said. “We got to have a memory like a goldfish. Got to move on. Not to say we don’t respect who we just played, but the clock is ticking.” 

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The Eagles held the ball for the final 10 minutes and 29 seconds of the game. Philadelphia converted 10 of 17 third-down attempts (58.8%). Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin was upset with the team’s tackling effort. 

“We weren’t good enough in some fundamental areas tonight,” he said. “We own that, particularly as coaches.

“We started slow, but you have to give some credit to those guys. I wasn’t necessarily overly concerned about the start. The starts are not going to define us. But again, I think we largely look at the big picture as those fundamental things outlined.”

In the second half, the Steelers had two total possessions – which culminated in a fumble and a punt – and ran 11 plays. The start of the game was worse. They punted on four of their first five drives but managed a field goal along the way – a fumble by Eagles rookie Cooper DeJean on a punt return gave the Steelers the ball at the Philadelphia 11-yard line. That was after the Steelers had already wasted a perfect punchout from Watt on Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts that gave them possession in plus-territory. 

“We knew they were capable of running it and passing it,” Watt said after Hurts threw for 290 yards and A.J. Brown and DeVonta Smith each had more than 100 yards and a touchdown for Philadelphia. 

Prior to its early field goal, Pittsburgh had the ball on the 1-yard line before a fight resulted in a pair of personal fouls assessed to the Steelers, much to Tomlin’s disgust. The team’s first first down came more than 20 minutes into the game. The Eagles finished with 26 first downs; Pittsburgh had 10. 

“They played way better than us tonight. It’s unacceptable how we played,” Wilson said. “I think we feel like we got to be sharper. So we just have to stay the course. And know that, obviously, we have a big week coming up. We have to respond. We have to get ready to go.”

The Steelers are 6-2 since Wilson took over the starting role from Justin Fields, who left Sunday with an abdomen injury following his one play in the game – which drew a dubious unnecessary roughness penalty. 

Pittsburgh averaged 3.3 yards on the ground against Philadelphia’s front. The team has scored at least 26 points in all but one of its wins (an 18-16 win over the Ravens at home on Nov. 17). But Wilson (14-of-22 for 128 passing yards) had 30 less passing yards against the Eagles than he did in last week’s 27-14 win over the Browns (158), and he has a 60.4% completion percentage over the two games.

That’s coincided with the absence of wide receiver George Pickens, the team’s leading target who has been sidelined with a hamstring injury. 

“We’re not just trying to squeak into the playoffs,” Heyward said. “It’s nice to know that we don’t have to wait until Week 18 if we’re in the playoffs or not. We have a playoff team. We knew that before this game. We played a quality, playoff opponent.” 

They’ll see a couple more in short order. That’s no reason to be dramatic and “circle the wagons,” Heyward said. Winning the AFC North remains in their grasp, and defeating the Ravens for a second time in 2024 would be a fitting final step in reaching that destination. 

“We’re not going to run from that,” Heyward said. “We knew we were walking into some tough games ahead.”

The San Francisco 49ers on Monday suspended linebacker De’Vondre Campbell for the final three games of the regular season for refusing to play Thursday night against the Los Angeles Rams.

Niners coach Kyle Shanahan said after the game that Campbell refused when asked to check in for linebacker Dre Greenlaw in the third quarter. Campbell had started 12 games this season, but was replaced in the starting lineup Thursday when Greenlaw returned from injury.

‘He said he didn’t want to play today,’ Shanahan said following the 49ers’ 12-6 loss, adding that it was the first time in his head coaching career that a player refused to play when asked.

Reaction to Campbell’s refusal to play was swift, even from his own teammates.

‘That is one person who decided not to play for his teammates,’ tight end George Kittle said. ‘It’s one person making a selfish decision. … I’ve never been around anybody that’s ever done that. And I hope I’m never around anybody that does that again.’

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Shanahan hinted when he met with reporters on Friday that the team would be taking action against Campbell.

‘You guys heard from our players. His actions from the game is not something you can do to your team or your teammates and still expect to be a part of our team,’ Shanahan said. 

Campbell, 31, was originally drafted by the Atlanta Falcons in 2016. He has played for the Falcons, Arizona Cardinals and Green Bay Packers before joining the 49ers this year on a one-year deal.

This story has been updated with new information.