Overview

• ESPN reports UNC GM Michael Lombardi and pro liaison Frantzy Jourdain notified New England in August that Patriots scouts were not welcome, a move first reported by John Middlekauff.
• Under Belichick, NFL personnel face broader limits at UNC, including a cap of three practice viewings and no direct access to coaches or staff beyond Jourdain, though film and phone intel remain available.
• Patriots head coach Mike Vrabel downplayed the impact, calling it "an individual choice" and saying New England will find other ways to evaluate Tar Heels prospects.
• Analysts and scouts warn the restrictions could complicate UNC players’ evaluations and recruiting by curbing in-person assessments and relationship-building with NFL staffs.
• The Athletic’s Dianna Russini reported claims of petty fallout, including a Patriots staffer being asked to remove a UNC shirt, and attributed Belichick’s stance to issues with Robert and Jonathan Kraft rather than with Vrabel or personnel chief Eliot Wolf.