It's starting to feel like only a matter of time before Raheem Morris is fired. The Atlanta Falcons are sitting at 5-9, after an impressive primetime win over the Bucs, but Morris is holding a talented roster back from its potential for the second consecutive season. Yet Arthur Blank has yet to pull the plug on the obvious failed experiment.
However, it seems more likely that Blank lets the second-year coach go in the offseason rather than before the season ends. Fans won't like having to witness four more weeks of the same cycle of coach-speak and the constant ineptitude, but it beats another season of having to deal with Morris.
With that said, it's starting to put a spotlight on who the Dirty Birds should consider hiring as their next head coach. The list of coaching candidates is significantly weaker than it's been in years past, so as much as Blank should fire Morris, he should stay away from considering these four coaches.
4 head coaching candidates Falcons need to avoid once Raheem Morris is fired
Pittsburgh Steelers OC Arthur Smith
Somehow, former Falcons' head coach Arthur Smith is again receiving head coaching consideration, even though his track record isn't on his side. He went 7-10 in all three seasons at the helm and was somehow mismanaging this offense just as badly, if not worse, than OC Zac Robinson has in 2025.
But since leaving Atlanta, Smith was hired as Mike Tomlin's offensive coordinator in Pittsburgh. Last season, his work with an aging Russell Wilson was promising, but the offense has taken a massive step back from last season with Aaron Rodgers replacing Wilson.
The Steelers rank 27th in the NFL in total yards per game and their running game is practically non-existent this season. And for a run-heavy OC, that can't happen, so it makes no sense why teams are interested beyond his past head coaching experience (that wasn't even successful).
Kansas City Chiefs OC Matt Nagy
If you want to discuss play-calling malpractice, look no further than Matt Nagy. The former Chicago Bears' head coach has turned arguably the greatest quarterback of all time in Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs' offense into a shell of the unit that once terrorized defenses week in and week out.
The 6-7 Chiefs have lost of their last five games this season, and that's in large part due to play-calling. Nagy's offense has scored more than 24 points just once during that stretch, and there's no reason a group with Xavier Worthy, Rashee Rice, and Travis Kelce should be struggling this much.
Indianapolis Colts DC Lou Anarumo
Lou Anarumo has enjoyed one of the biggest rises in coaching circles this season, but part of that was because the Bengals scapegoated him. Now that he's in Indianapolis, he's inherited more talent, but some of the same issues that plagued him in Cincinnati have resurfaced with the Colts' defense.
Anarumo has been a finalist for head coach openings before, but his track record isn't that great. The Colts' secondary has allowed the fourth-most receiving yards this season, and that's despite trading a king's for Sauce Gardner while already having other stars like Kenny Moore III and Camyn Bynum.
Denver Broncos DC Vance Joseph
I'll admit, I'm not as against hiring Joseph as I am the other names on this list, but that doesn' t change the fact he'd be far from ideal. Jeff Ulbrich has done an impressive job turning this Atlanta defense around, so hiring an offensive-minded head coach would be the better course of action for Blank.
The problem with hiring Joseph is that his short stint as a head coach flopped, but he wasn't given time. It's also a bit alarming that hiring him wouldn't come with a top offensive coordinator candidate, since this team needs an innovator to turn the struggling offense around.