Bill Belichick has been working to formulate the ultimate staff in year one of being a college head coach. And he has been constantly finding guys from all over to join his staff, such as his son Steve Belichick as defensive coordinator, Matt Lombardi as offensive assistant and Michael Lombardi as general manager — for example.
His latest addition? Chris Jones as his defensive assistant.
Inside Carolina shares:
Chris Jones is coming to UNC with head coaching and front office experience, spanning the college, NFL and CFL ranks. Updated Coach Tracker: https://t.co/a91eQHVPNt pic.twitter.com/5TjEKJeJhs
— InsideCarolina (@InsideCarolina) January 8, 2025
Jeremiah Holloway of Inside Carolina shares more information on Jones and the kind of career has had thus far:
"Jones played football at Chattanooga as a walk-on and began his coaching career after he left. From 1993-2001, he made stops at North Jackson High School in Alabama, Tennessee Tech, Alabama and UT Martin before beginning his CFL career.
He started with the Montreal Alouettes in 2002 as the defensive line coach before becoming the defensive coordinator in 2003. In 2008, he became the defensive coordinator for the Calgary Stampeders. He doubled as the team’s director of player personnel beginning in 2010. Jones’ next stop was in Toronto, where he served as the defensive coordinator and assistant general manager for the Toronto Argonauts.
Jones became the head coach of the Edmonton Eskimos (now Elks) in 2014, and he spent two seasons with the team. He won a Grey Cup championship as the head coach in 2015. Jones then served as the head coach and general manager of the Saskatchewan Roughriders in 2016 and won CFL Coach of the Year in 2018. After three seasons with the Roughriders, Jones landed in the NFL as a defensive assistant for the Cleveland Browns in 2019 under Kitchens."
As you can see, Jones already has prior experience with interim head coach now offensive coordinator Freddie Kitchens. Which serves as a plus, when talking about chemistry within a coaching staff.
The type of leadership North Carolina will be under next season will be filled with plenty of experience — Belichick seems to make sure there is no room for error, as the expectations are high for fans in Chapel Hill.