Just in :Why the Falcons appointed Morris as head coach instead of Bill Belichick

Why the Falcons appointed Morris as head coach instead of Bill Belichick 

 

 

Before taking a temporary position as the Rams’ DC, the former Bucs bench boss was Atlanta’s coach.

After a thorough search that included six-time Super Bowl winner Bill

Belichick, the Los Angeles Rams defensive coordinator Raheem Morris was hired by the Atlanta Falcons as their

head coach, a person familiar with the decision told The Associated Press on Thursday.

Due to the lack of an announcement from the team, the speaker only agreed to remain anonymous

Having been the Falcons’ interim head coach for the final 11 games of the 2020 season following Dan Quinn’s firing, 47-

year-old Morris is well-known in Atlanta. He spent three seasons as the Tampa Bay Buccaneers’ coach in the past.

After interviewing 14 candidates—Belichick being the most notable—the Falcons selected Morris.

Bobby Slowik, the offensive coordinator for the Houston Texans, was interviewed

again by the team earlier on Thursday. Ultimately, the Falcons chose to hire a seasoned coach who has been in the

league since 2002, with the exception of one season during which he was in Atlanta from 2015 to 2020.

Together with general manager Terry Fontenot, another Black person, Morris becomes the first non-interim Black

coach in Falcons history and takes charge of a team that hasn’t had a winning season since 2017.

The hiring guarantees the highest number of minority head coaches ever—at least nine—to begin the 2024 season.

Morris moved to the Rams after Arthur Smith was chosen for the Falcons position following the 2020 campaign. He

was that team’s defensive coordinator for three seasons, winning a Super Bowl in his first year of service.

Shortly after the Falcons’ last game of the regular season, Smith was let go. In each of his three seasons, he finished 7–10.

When Morris was hired by the Buccaneers as head coach for the first time in 2009, he was only 33 years old.

He played for three seasons, ending with a 17-31 record, one winning season, and no postseason trips.

Morris previously served as Quinn’s pass game coordinator, receivers coach, and

secondary coach in Atlanta, working on both sides of the line. Prior to the 2020 campaign, he was elevated to defensive

coordinator and then, following Quinn’s firing due to a 0–5 start, to interim head coach

Morris finished his tenure as head coach with a 21-38 record after leading the

Falcons to a 4-7 record for the remainder of the season. He was the first of seven applicants to interview for the full-time

position that was ultimately filled by Tennessee Titans offensive coordinator Smith.

He is only the second head coach in Atlanta history to hold the position for

two terms. Marion Campbell served in that capacity from 1974 to 1976 and

again from 1987 to 1989, but he was unable to lead the team to victory during either of those stints.

Given the team’s apparent interest in a coach of Belichick’s caliber and its interviews with a number of young

assistants, including Slowik, who was regarded as a rising star, Morris’ hiring was somewhat of a surprise

It will be particularly interesting to see how the new coach is received by a fan

base that had become more and more disinterested during the Falcons’ six

consecutive losing seasons and their inability to win a Super Bowl in their 58-year existence

Considering that Mercedes-Benz Stadium frequently has thousands of empty seats,

many assumed owner Arthur Blank would choose a well-known player.

Rams players and general manager Les Snead both praised Morris’s influence on a team that made it back to the postseason this year after missing it in 2022.

“I’m pretty sure there will be a lot of tampering charges,” said Snead, “because just about every player will text him wanting to play for him.”

Morris is “programmed to… respect everyone, develop a relationship with everyone, regardless of where you’re at

in the organization,” according to Snead. You can see the respect returning to him as he accomplishes that.”

Morris has coached defense and offense before, something the Rams general manager also mentioned

Given that he has both defensive and offensive room coaching experience, let’s call his football acumen unique, Snead

said. “On Earth, there are very few coaches who have visited both of those rooms. His ability to work collaboratively

will give any organization a competitive advantage. Most teams won’t be able to compete with that advantage.”

The Rams’ defense under Morris finished the previous campaign in 18th place in terms of scoring defense (22.3 points per

game), 13th in passing yards (231.1), 12th in rushing yards (106.8), and 20th in terms of yards allowed (337.9 per game).

The coaching cycle’s fourth minority hire

Morris joins Dave Canales in Carolina, Jerod Mayo in New England, and Antonio Pierce in Las Vegas as the fourth

minority hire of this coaching cycle. Other minority coaches in the league are Mike Tomlin of Pittsburgh, DeMeco

Ryans of Houston, Todd Bowles of Tampa Bay, Mike McDaniel of Miami, and Robert Saleh of the New York Jets.

There are currently two positions in Seattle and Washington that need to be filled.

Richard Lapchick, the founder of The Institute for Diversity and Ethics in Sport (TIDES), said, “This is a major milestone for the National Football League, which

has been struggling to raise the percentage of head coaches of color, particularly Black head coaches.” “The

NFL has worked hard to put programs in place to make this happen and the rewards have finally come home.”

After Belichick arrived in Atlanta on one of Blank’s private planes for a follow-up

interview last Friday, it appeared as though the Falcons were gaining ground on him as their next head coach.

However, it was unclear how he would get along with Fontenot, the general manager the Falcons chose to retain after firing Smith.

From the beginning, Blank insisted that Fontenot would continue to be in charge of personnel decisions, with both

Fontenot and the new coach answering directly to team CEO Rich McKay. For Belichick, who had complete control over

all football-related matters during his time in New England, that would have been a significant change.

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