Falcons just confirmed major Kevin Stefanski coaching update all fans expected

The Atlanta Falcons just gave their fanbase a million reasons to be excited for 2026, and that starts and ends with the hire of Kevin Stefanski. Not everyone seems to agree after his stint in Cleveland, but the Falcons are finally ushering a new era after they were stuck in neutral with Raheem Morris.

Now that this has been made official, Stefanski is wasting no time starting to assemble his new coaching staff. It's expected that Bill Callahan and Tommy Rees will join the offensive staff, but the Falcons confirmed on Twitter that Jeff Ulbrich is officially being retained as defensive coordinator.

This is an update that was expected, and now we have confirmation. It felt inevitable once Arthur Blank weighed in saying he wanted him back, but that doesn't make it any less exciting. They even blocked him from taking other DC interviews because the plan was always for him to return in 2026.

Jeff Ulbrich is officially coming back as Falcons' defensive coordinator

Ulbrich did a masterful job with the defense last season, so now the young defensive nucleus will receive continuity despite what's expected to be a major overhaul to the coaching staff. This could also mean that DL coach Nate Ollie is likely to be retained, but we don't have confirmation on that yet.

Before the 48-year-old returned to Atlanta last offseason, their defense was in a horrible spot. Ex-DC Jimmy Lake set the unit back years and they had no pass rush or versatility, which is something Ulbrich managed to improve basically overnight in his first stint as a full-time defensive play-caller.

The pass-rush was among the worst in football in 2024, but was among the best in football in 2025. Their 57 sacks ranked second in the NFL, only trailing the Denver Broncos, but it also saw the Dirty Birds break the franchise record for sacks in a single season with two rookies leading the charge.

First-round rookies Jalon Walker and James Pearce Jr. made an instant impact on this defense, which helped buy Ulbrich another season despite a beat-up secondary and some struggles against the run. Pearce's 10.5 sacks led all rookies, while Walker's 5.5 sacks ranked second among the rookie class.

Under Ulbrich's tutelage, Pearce managed to develop into a legit Defensive Rookie of the Year candidate, but he may not even be his biggest success story. The Falcons signed Divine Deablo for dirt cheap in free agency, and he played the role Ulbrich brought him to Atlanta for to perfection.

The defense obviously isn't the best in football, but they took massive strides, so despite the ties to the Raheem Morris era, Stefanski knew he couldn't risk stunting the development of the youngsters by making a DC change.