Falcons Earn Special Opportunity with East-West Shrine Bowl

The Atlanta Falcons will have a unique advantage at one of the NFL's first big events of the 2025 offseason.

ESPN's Adam Schefter reported Wednesday that Falcons special teams coordinator Marquice Williams will be the head coach of the East team. New York Giants defensive coordinator Shane Bowen will coach the other squad -- the West.

The two head coaches for the Shrine Bowl will be Falcons special teams coordinator Marquice Williams and Giants defensive coordinator Shane Bowen. Williams will coach the East, Bowen the West.

The West team also will have members of the Titans’ offensive staff too, meaning they…
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) January 16, 2025

It's a little ironic Williams received the nod to be a head coach at the Shrine Bowl. There were moments during the 2024 season that it appeared Williams might not keep his job with the Falcons let alone coach at an All-Star event.

Williams was one of the few coaches who began his Falcons tenure under previous head coach Arthur Smith and stayed with the organization once they hired Raheem Morris. Williams' special teams units performed well in three years under Smith.

But in 2024, they struggled in key areas.

The Falcons were ranked second-to-last in yards allowed per punt return this past season. Atlanta also featured a poor kicking game.

The Falcons made only 70.7% of their field goals during the 2024 campaign. That was also second-to-last in the league, as only the Cleveland Browns had a worse percentage.

Younghoe Koo's struggles and his injury can receive the bulk of the blame for the Falcons' poor field goal statistics. Riley Patterson replaced Koo for the final three games of the season and made only 4 of 7 kicks.

But ultimately, Williams should be held responsible for all special teams performances.

Williams, though, will be back for 2025, and his head coaching role in the Shrine Bowl will give the Falcons an early-look at lots of draft prospects this spring.

The Falcons have been very active in scouting offseason All-Star Games, particularly the Senior Bowl, in recent years. The Shrine Bowl will take place at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, TX on Jan. 30.

The Senior Bowl will be the same week in Mobile, AL on Feb. 1.