Two years after looking past future first ballot Hall of Famer Bill Belichick, only to hire Raheem Morris, the Atlanta Falcons are already looking for a new head coach again. This is not where Falcons owner Arthur Blank expected to be after seeing his team shell out a $160 million contract for Kirk Cousins, spending a first-round pick on Michael Penix Jr., or aggressively trading their 2026 first-round pick away to land James Pearce Jr.
Yet, after Morris led the Falcons to a pair of eight-win seasons while missing the playoffs both times, Atlanta felt like they had no choice but to start over again. Only, this time, they’ve fired general manager Terry Fontenot, too.
The Falcons have already begun their search to replace Morris, and some have been connecting the dots between Atlanta and a top candidate.
Later this week, the Falcons will interview former NFL MVP Matt Ryan for their president of football role. Meanwhile, Sports Illustrated’s Albert Breer couldn’t help but point out the connection between Ryan and Minnesota Vikings defensive coordinator Brian Flores, who is expected to be a candidate to become Atlanta’s next head coach.
Ryan and Flores were actually teammates at Boston College, where the latter was a starting linebacker while Ryan was the scout-team QB. The two have kept in touch ever since.
Could their connection be enough to reunite with the Falcons? Only time will tell, but Flores appears to be a strong candidate on paper.
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