When the Falcons hired Raheem Morris to replace Arthur Smith, it drew polarizing reactions from outside of the organization.
Some, primarily former colleagues, praised Arthur Blank and Atlanta’s search committee for giving Morris a second chance at being a head coach. Supporters touted his ability to connect with people, players, and coaches, along with his enthusiastic personality, as reasons to be excited.
However, there were a similar number of detractors, who largely pointed to Morris’ first stint as a head coach in Tampa Bay and his failures with the Buccaneers. On top of that, the Falcons were mocked for passing over the greatest coach of all time in Bill Belichick, who was believed to be Arthur Blank’s top candidate before other voices got into his ear.
Through 14 weeks as head coach in Atlanta, some are already tired of Raheem Morris, leading to calls for his job. Nobody should expect Arthur Blank to listen to those so soon, but is it an overreaction to say the Falcons made a mistake hiring Morris?
The knee-jerk reaction would say yes, but let’s dig into the meat and potatoes.
Morris has been directly responsible for several things this offseason: hiring Zac Robinson and Jimmy Lake, signing Kirk Cousins and drafting Michael Penix Jr., and preparing for and managing the games.
If we had to grade all of those right now, I’m not sure any of them would get much higher than a passing grade. Penix has to be considered inconclusive, but the others would be lucky to get a C-grade.
Lake has been the fan base’s punching bag for most of the season, and though there are four games left, I expect the Falcons will move on from Raheem Morris’ good friend and his defensive coordinator after this year. Robinson has been inconsistent at best as the team’s offensive coordinator, but he’s much more likely to be brought back.
Cousins is drastically underperforming, and that might be putting it nicely. To be frank, the Falcons royally screwed up by signing the veteran signal caller, and Morris was a driving factor in that decision.
Meanwhile, Morris’ ability to connect and motivate players was believed to be his strongest attribute. Despite that, the Falcons have regularly been unfocused or lacked fire; that’s a direct reflection of Morris’ coaching. Penalties have also been an issue, another sign of lackluster coaching and preparation.
If we are trying to find the good things Morris has done since taking over Atlanta, the list is short, and honestly, I’m having a hard time giving you even one. Maybe it’s not an overreaction after all.
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Rich von Biberstein/Icon Sportswire
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