Bill Belichick isn’t much for NFL rules allowing assistants to pursue head coaching jobs with their seasons still happening, but he adheres to them in his own way. And if those interviews are going to happen, they’re going to happen on Belichick’s terms.
His assistants are told, “Here’s the day, here’s the time.” He insists the interviews happen in close proximity to Gillette Stadium. When they’re over? They’re over.
That should explain how, on Tuesday, Josh McDaniels came into new information that he hadn’t previously been privy. It’s ultimately why he made the decision to leave the Colts at the altar and remain as Patriots offensive coordinator.