Raheem Morris Addresses Falcons Job Status After Latest Embarrassment

The Atlanta Falcons currently sit at 4-9 on the season, having lost seven of their last eight games, and with Sunday’s 37-9 loss at the hands of the Seattle Seahawks, they punched their ticket to their eighth consecutive season with both a losing record and no playoff berth.

Head coach Raheem Morris has been under scrutiny for weeks now. As his seat gets warmer and warmer with each passing game, Morris attempted to assure that no changes are imminent.

“He is 100% in support of me,” Morris said regarding Falcons owner Arthur Blank. “Support ain’t an issue. He is absolutely outstanding.”

For what it's worth, there is a precedent that lends favor to Morris sticking around. Blank bought the Falcons in 2002, and besides extreme cases such as Bobby Petrino, he has typically given his head coaches at least three years before firing them.

Previous head coach Arthur Smith was given three seasons, winning seven games in each of them before he was ultimately fired. Morris is currently in his second year of coaching the Falcons.

However, in the case of Morris, he took over a team that was expected to be contending for the playoffs, and is now contending for a top-10 pick, the rights of which Atlanta does not even have. Morris is currently 12-18 as the Falcons' coach, and is 6-15 since the team’s hot 6-3 start last season.

What’s frustrating for Falcons fans is that Blank continues to stand by Morris, even after spelling out this offseason that the winning can’t wait.

“I’m still impatient to win. I’m still a very competitive guy,” Blank said back in July. “The fans are [too] and they should be. The aspirations haven’t changed. We [the Falcons] want to be one of the best six or seven teams year in and year out… I think we’re moving in that direction.”

Blank wants to win, the fans want to win, but the victories aren’t coming, and at the end of the day, the responsibility falls squarely on Raheem Morris. The coach himself has taken ownership of the team’s struggles.

“There’s no such thing as a losing team. There’s a losing leader.” Morris said after the Falcons fell 30-27 to the Carolina Panthers in Week 11.

When the coach admits he’s responsible for the losses, and the owner has already voiced his impatience, it’s remarkable that Blank still gives Morris his full backing.

For now, Falcons fans are left watching a team that promised contention but has once again delivered disappointment, with leadership remaining intact. Arthur Blank’s loyalty to Raheem Morris is clear, for now, but as losses pile up, patience may soon run out, both in the front office and in the stands.

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