America’s purest successor to Jeff Fisher has been asked to find employment elsewhere. The Atlanta Falcons have fired head coach Arthur Smith after three straight seven-win seasons, and little progress along the way.
“Decisions like this are never easy and they never feel good,” team owner Arthur Blank said in a statement. “We have profound respect for Coach Smith and appreciate all the hard work and dedication he has put into the Falcons over the last three years. He has been part of building a good culture in our football team, but the results on the field have not met our expectations. After significant thought and reflection, we have determined the best way forward for our team is new leadership in the head coaching position.”
Per the team:
The search for a new head coach of the Falcons will begin immediately. It will be led by Blank and McKay, with input from Falcons General Manager Terry Fontenot, and several other appropriate members of Blank’s Atlanta Falcons and AMB Sports and Entertainment organizations. There is no timetable for filling the role.
The Falcons have brought multiple first-round talents on offense during Smith’s tenure, and he could never quite figure out what to do with any of them. Tight end Kyle Pitts, receiver Drake London, and running back Bijan Robinson have been three of the NFL’s most camouflaged skill position players, and the only person who was able to stop them consistently was Smith, who seemed bound and determined to show how creative he could be with lesser players, to ill effect most of the time.
In the end, Smith’s fate was likely sealed by four losses in the last five games in the 2023 season, capped off by a 48-17 beatdown at the hands of the New Orleans Saints on Sunday.
Before that game, the Falcons ranked 21st in Offensive DVOA, and that was supposed to be Smith’s baby. Atlanta ranked 31st in Offensive DVOA in 2022 and 31st in 2021, so if you want to peer through rose-colored glasses, you could say that this year’s Falcons were a little bit better. But if you watch the tape, you know that this was a hopeless endeavor, especially given how Smith mishandled the quarterback situation.
“Sure, as I’ve said many times, we know the industry that we’re in,” Smith said after the Saints loss, when asked whether he wanted to keep his job. “I love doing what I’m doing. Also, like I’ve told you many times, this is the industry that we are in. I love coaching. I would have loved to win today. Obviously, we didn’t.”
Sadly, Smith left Blank no rational choice for the future of his team.
