Offensive evolution of the Atlanta Falcons under Dan Quinn
By Jeremy Riggs
When Dan Quinn took over the Atlanta Falcons in the 2015 off-season, it wasn’t necessarily the most popular choice.
Adam Gase, Josh McDaniels, Todd Bowles, Rex Ryan, Teryl Austin, among others were preferred, in fact this article of head coach candidates for the Atlanta Falcons listed Dan Quinn as a bad fit for the Falcons.
Dan Quinn has led the Falcons to a respectable 36-28 record, their second ever Super Bowl appearance, and has never finished below 3rd in the NFC South. Meanwhile, Gase fizzled out in the head coaching gig he got, and is now in New York with the Jets.
Todd Bowles’ opportunity with the Jets didn’t work out and he’s now in Tampa Bay as a defensive coordinator, Rex Ryan lasted one year in Buffalo as a head coach, Josh McDaniels seem’s like the heir to the throne in New England, and Teryl Austin never became a head coach.
While the Atlanta Falcons seemingly bucked the trend we see in the NFL to hire offensive minds to lead their franchises, Arthur Blank and Thomas Dimitroff knew they needed a defensive mind to pair with the elite offense that they were building in Atlanta.
More importantly, they were looking for a coach that could come in and change the culture and get rid of the mess that Mike Smith had created.
The Brotherhood has been the change that both the organization and the city of Atlanta were looking for. More importantly, it is a culture that the players on the roster have bought into and one that is attractive to free agents all across the league.