'I Was Significantly Disappointed': Inside Falcons Decision to Fire Coach Arthur Smith
In the hours that followed the Atlanta Falcons' return home after a 48-17 loss to the New Orleans Saints in the season finale, coach Arthur Smith was fighting for his job.
Smith, Falcons owner Arthur Blank, CEO Rich McKay and the rest of Atlanta's management team talked for multiple hours, reviewing Smith's three-year tenure.
It was a thoughtful, impassioned conversation - but one that ended in Atlanta parting ways with the 42-year-old Smith, who finished with a record of 21-30.
"We had a discussion about where we were as an organization, where the roster was," Blank said. "We spent quiet time after we finished with coach Smith deciding the right decision, all things considered, we needed to move forward."
In a press conference Monday afternoon that lasted nearly an hour and a half, Blank and McKay outlined a number of reasons for why they ultimately felt Smith was no longer the right man to lead the organization.
Of note, general manager Terry Fontenot wasn't present, instead tending to management operations with the coaching staff at team headquarters in Flowery Branch.
The decision to fire Smith wasn't surprising to many on the outside, but those inside Atlanta's locker room donned a different tone during cleanout Monday.
So, why now to fire Smith?
Why, after he and Fontenot spent two years battling through - and doing a job praised by both Blank and McKay - salary cap limitations, was his first year with a revamped roster also his last?
There wasn't one specific factor for Blank. Instead, it was a culmination of things that mounted down the season's closing stretch and proved too much for Smith to overcome.
"The fact we ended up where we did after we had a schedule that was really to our favor, I think generally most people would say we drafted well over three years, our free agency particularly this last year would get very high grades," Blank said.
"The gap between achieving and underachieving was much bigger than I anticipated this year."
Atlanta played the easiest schedule in the NFL this season, including eight games against teams with records below .500. It went 2-6 in those games, including 1-3 against organizations holding top-four draft picks.
Blank was quick to note these struggles Monday, citing the Falcons' "abysmal" results in winnable games.
Atlanta Falcons owner Arthur Blank has moved from coach Arthur Smith.
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Regarding Atlanta's draft class, five of six picks grew into consistent contributors by year's end.
First-round running back Bijan Robinson set the franchise record with 1,463 yards from scrimmage. Second-round left guard Matthew Bergeron started all 17 games and allowed only two sacks over his final appearances.
Defensive end Zach Harrison, drafted in the third round, had four tackles for loss and three sacks in his final three appearances. Fourth-round cornerback Clark Phillips III was a starter over the final five weeks.
Atlanta received unexpectedly strong play from seventh-round safety DeMarcco Hellams, who started four of his last five appearances and made 40 total tackles.
Only seventh-round guard Jovaughn Gwyn failed to make an impact, but he was on the 53-man roster all season.
By all accounts, Atlanta's draft class was quite strong - as was its free agency group.
The Falcons swung big on safety Jessie Bates III and defensive tackle David Onyemata, both of whom were highly regarded on and off the field.
Linebacker Kaden Elliss, defensive end Calais Campbell and outside linebacker Bud Dupree were each quality newcomers, helping Atlanta eclipse its sack total from the previous two years combined.
Talent wasn't an issue. It's not expected to be an issue next season, as Atlanta remains in win-now mode.
"I think we're in a good place," McKay said. "We intend to win in 2024. That's one of the reasons we made this move. This year, we did not achieve what we wanted to achieve. We felt like change was necessary to compete in '24."
This talented roster is perhaps one of the biggest reasons Blank pulled the trigger - he cited the quality of both on-field performance and off-field leadership, and maximizing this roster with the right coach is priority No. 1.
"We owe it to the players to make sure that given their commitment to the game, we're giving them the best opportunity to win," Blank said. "And if there's anything less than that in any way, we have to address that ourselves.
"So, part of this is to honor our fanbase, but part of it is to honor our players and make sure they know we'll do everything we can to give them the best opportunity to perform to give us a chance to have championships in Atlanta."
Blank and McKay both pointed out multiple times Atlanta's fanbase has been rated amongst the league's best the past two years in the Voice of the Fan. Blank feels fans still have faith in the organization to compete at the highest level.
The Falcons haven't made the playoffs in six years. They've won seven games in five of those six years. In a sense, they're stuck.
This was the year Blank expected to break free from the chains of mediocrity. Instead, there he was, facing the media after firing a coach he'd hired just three years prior.
"We definitely underachieved this year by a lot," Blank said. "This wasn't about getting to the playoffs - obviously that's our goal - but was more about getting to the next level and playing at a competitive level we didn't come close to.
"I was significantly disappointed."
The 81-year-old Blank is ready to win. He believes he's the right man to make the selection for the next coach, who'll be Atlanta's sixth since Blank bought the team in Dec. 2001.
Blank still thinks Smith was a good hire, citing his proven track record as the Tennessee Titans' offensive coordinator, and added the Falcons' process was lauded around the league.
Smith's offense was ultimately a critical part of his downfall, as the Falcons failed to score 30 points in a game this season. Blank had no answers for why it didn't translate.
But the owner did feel strongly about this: regardless of circumstance, going 7-10 in three consecutive years doesn't reach the standard he's set for the organization.
"There's no question that over the last three years, our results haven't been what I committed to, which is to win championships and compete at the highest levels," Blank said. "We haven't done that for three years.
"We are what we are."
Now, the goal becomes getting it right - and changing the narrative now encompassing Atlanta amidst its playoff drought, which is tied for the third-longest active streak in the NFL.
The Falcons have already begun the search for Smith's successor, with Blank making the final decision. He and McKay will conduct the process together with Fontenot "heavily involved," along with other members of Blank's management team.
There's no timeline to make a decision, with Blank and McKay each noting Atlanta will cast a wide net in its candidate pool, considering both past head coaches and current coordinators.
Offensive or defensive, old or young, experienced or inexperienced - the Falcons won't discriminate. They've tried everything - and by moving on from Smith, are showing they're more serious than ever about bringing wins to Atlanta.
"We like the direction of the team and franchise, but we need results, and we need results sooner rather than later," McKay said. "We felt like that's what we needed to do right now to make that happen."
