Tuesday afternoon was the first press conference for Tar Heels general manager Michael Lombardi since his hire as he spoke with the media about everything from why his job is important to how they are building the roster. Here are the most important things we took away from what he had to say.
Program Considers Itself the 33rd NFL Team
This was the most notable quote to come out of the presser and it is the second time in the last week or so that we have heard this phrasing after 2026 4✮ QB Brodie McWhorter said that was what Bill Belichick told him in a recent visit with the staff. "Everything we do here is predicated on building a pro team,” said Lombardi on Tuesday. “We consider ourselves the 33rd (NFL) team, because everybody involved with our program has had some form of aspect in pro football.” This was what we were promised when Belichick took on the job and the staff is making sure that message is getting out any way possible.
Staff is Still Being Pieced Together and Will Be Announced at a Later Time
Lombardi confirmed that the Tar Heels are still in the midst of adding to their staff and that nothing is finalized yet. “The coaching staff, which is still ongoing, and we'll have an announcement about that later. But the reality of it is building a personnel department. Hiring people is great, but then those people have to buy into what you're doing and what you believe in, and how they're going to evaluate.” The fact that there will be an announcement later seems to indicate that there could be another important hire before this is all said and done. This is something certainly worth monitoring over the next couple of weeks.
Roster Was Built Inside Out
Lombardi was asked about the construction of this roster and he eventually pointed to the Super Bowl as a great example of why they are building the way that they are. He says that the staff’s focus has been on building this roster “inside out” since they took the job in December. Never was that more evident than when you look at how the team attacked the 2025 class leading into last Wednesday’s signing day where they signed seven defensive lineman to go along with the three they landed in the class during the early signing period.
Staff Trusted Their Eyes With Late Offers
The Tar Heels regular signing period haul contained a lot of players that held smaller school offers or even no offers at all, but Lombardi said on Tuesday that he and the staff didn’t care about that. “All I know is for my 35 years or more in the National Football League, I've drafted players that weren't recruited out of high school. I've drafted players that had no scholarship offers coming out of high school. So there's always going to be a lot of guys that get missed, and I think you have to trust your instincts and trust your eyes.” While many of these guys are developmental pieces, you saw some guys like QB Au’Tori Newkirk and LB Jake Bauer take massive leaps in the late 2025 rankings which shows the team may have found some hidden gems.
Program Wants to Be National
The team’s new staff has been hitting the 2026, 2027 and even 2028 classes hard and there have been a lot of national offers handed out as opposed to in-state and established pipeline ones. We have a great brand. We have this UNC logo (which) is worldwide. So we shouldn't limit ourselves. I think that we can walk into any school and say, 'we're North Carolina. We have the greatest coach in the history of football, and we have a great university come play for us.' I think it's a powerful message. And so why should we limit ourselves to just a smaller footprint? We're going to be well, we're going to be a national program, and we're not going to back down to some other programs, because we're in North Carolina. We'll stand on firm ground against anyone.” This is the mindset that Tar Heel fans want to hear coming from that building and it is the right mindset for this staff to take with the headliner they have in Belichick. The hope, though, is that it starts with the home state and expands out from there.
Response From Players to Offseason Workouts Have Been a Positive
There were a lot of questions about how holdovers from Mack Brown’s roster would handle the new expectations from the new staff, but things appear to be going well. “I think their response to our off season workouts has been good. People want to be coached. I think one thing you learn about players, whether it's high school, college or pro, players want to improve.” While there still may be some portal entries at the end of the spring, it’s good to hear that most guys are adjusting to life in the Belichick system.
Players' Money Will Be Determined Based Off Grading System
One of the most interesting things that was said by Lombardi on Tuesday was his comments about the system with which they divide the NIL collective pool amongst their roster. “If you're a starter on the team, there's going to be a certain value placed on what level of starter you are. That's why you have to have a grading system. You just can't arbitrarily say, 'I like this guy, like that guy.' We're not picking fruit here. You have to have a grading system. And so when the grade reflects what you pay, it's an amazing thing.” It shouldn’t be shocking that this is how things are going to run, but it does feel like it is a different mindset from what Mack Brown and Co. were doing with the NIL money that the program was bringing in.