Falcons' Organizational Reset Signals Offensive Scheme Failure and QB Limbo

Key Quotes

"didn't take long jp the black monday that we usually get well, it was a black sunday in atlanta pushing the pile here mike rader jp acosta welcome into the show here a very special edition we're going to be doing a few of these over the next few days but the atlanta falcons like i said could not wait they made they make terry fontenot their gm he's gone head coach raheem morris he's gone as well it is a house cleaning for the falcons i'm honestly kind of surprised that they didn't wait until monday"

Mike Renner expresses surprise at the Atlanta Falcons' decision to fire both their General Manager, Terry Fontenot, and Head Coach, Raheem Morris, on a Sunday, rather than waiting for the typical "Black Monday." Renner notes that this "house cleaning" is unexpected given the team's recent performance.

"i mean usually like as much as we say it probably doesn't matter that they won four straight it's probably not super indicative of where you're going to be long term usually it feels like owners give deference to especially head coaches if they finish the season strong it's hard to say that anyone finished too much stronger than the falcons did i mean four straight wins you only had the texans the jags the vikings and the seahawks have longer winning streaks heading into the playoffs"

Mike Renner points out that teams often receive leniency from ownership, particularly head coaches, if they finish the season with a strong winning streak. Renner highlights that the Falcons' four-game winning streak was a significant accomplishment, with only a few other teams having longer streaks heading into the playoffs.

"but raheem morris was not very good at the game management aspect of being a head coach i thought there were times where it looked like he had too much on his plate when it came to that that's part of why i thought he brought in jeff ulbrich to be the defensive coordinator so he could focus only on the game management aspects and that just hasn't improved and then on top of that you can't have an offense with first round pick all pro caliber running back in bijan robinson first round pick pro bowl borderline all pro caliber receiver in drake london first round pick tight end kyle pitts just had five receiving touchdowns this season and still not be good on offense"

JP Acosta critiques Raheem Morris's performance as head coach, specifically mentioning his struggles with game management and the offense's underperformance despite significant investments in offensive talent. Acosta notes that despite having high-caliber players like Bijan Robinson, Drake London, and Kyle Pitts, the offense failed to produce effectively.

"as far as i know i mean there are some obvious things to point to outside of even just the record the fact that he has not turned it around the kirk cousins deal one is almost like an unforgivable sort of whiff to give that much money to a guy who you're benching by the end of his very first season and such that you can't move on from it even the next year there's so much dead cap you know they obviously would have liked to have gotten that off the books this year but it just was not feasible so it literally is hampering your franchise for three years post that move"

JP Acosta identifies the Kirk Cousins contract as a significant misstep by the Falcons' management. Acosta explains that giving a large sum of money to Cousins, only to bench him later in his first season, created a substantial dead cap hit that will negatively impact the franchise for three years.

"i think if a good head coach comes in here you can turn this thing around real quick see my only my only worry if you are a gm going to atlanta i guess not only worry but i have two worries one it's michael penix jr and his injury history and i think that's like similar with the giants now and all that jackson dart went through and his rookie year it's like you have a quarterback that is really teetering on in terms of do you know he's going to be there and do you know he's going to be effective truthfully given what we saw from this season so like there's big questions at quarterback and also currently as it stands in 2026 the atlanta falcons are over the salary cap they are not in a great spot to remake this roster in your image"

JP Acosta suggests that a strong head coach could quickly turn the Falcons around, but he also expresses concerns for a potential General Manager. Acosta highlights two main worries: Michael Penix Jr.'s injury history and the team's salary cap situation, which he believes will make it difficult to rebuild the roster.

"i'm going to go kevin stefanski i think the way that he runs that offense it's sort of similar to a zac robinson with all the 12 personnel with all of the the run action the outside zone stuff they do and the play action off of it i think kevin stefanski can still design and still call an offense and we've seen when everything is working right when there is a quarterback that is at least playable in that offense he can take a team to the playoffs"

Mike Renner selects Kevin Stefanski as his top candidate for the Falcons' head coaching position. Renner believes Stefanski's offensive scheme, which utilizes 12 personnel, run action, and play-action, is effective. Renner points to Stefanski's past success in taking teams to the playoffs when he has a competent quarterback.