Last year, North Carolina general manager Mike Lombardi declared that the Tar Heels were the NFL’s 33rd franchise, implying that the other 32 teams had no interest in any of their draft-eligible players.
That statement proved accurate when none of the players from the first year of Bill Belichick’s tenure at Chapel Hill were selected in the 2026 NFL Draft. Out of the 257 draft picks, the Tar Heels were left with zero.
The program had entered the transfer portal in search of one-year players who could later pursue NFL opportunities. However, with insufficient time to build a strong incoming freshman class, the Tar Heels relied heavily on established transfers—yet still fell short in producing draft-ready talent.
By 2025, the program’s core issue was evident: a lack of quality players. Lombardi’s role was to address this gap, but despite his efforts in recruitment and Belichick’s coaching, the team failed to develop any players selected in the draft.
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