The Atlanta Falcons are sitting at 1-2 right now not because of their offense, but because of their defense. And that's not an insult or a back-handed compliment. If anyone but Jeff Ulbrich was their defensive coordinator, this unit would be cooked and the Falcons would almost certainly be 0-3.
When the Falcons hired Kevin Stefanski this offseason, there was a reason there was such urgency to retain Ulbrich as DC. He unlocked this defense last year with the career-high sack totals, and even though he doesn't have his two star pass-rushers this season in Jalon Walker and James Pearce Jr., this defense has still been strong.
That makes what this Atlanta defense has accomplished all the more impressive. In the face of the worst circumstances you could possibly imagine, not only has Ulbrich avoided regression, he fixed one of the biggest issues that plagued his defense a season ago.
Last season, there was a brief moment where the 49-year-old was getting head coaching buzz, and given what this Dirty Birds defense has done, it's safe to say he deserves head coach consideration-- even if it would sting to see him go.
Jeff Ulbrich deserves a chance to become an NFL head coach once again
The pass-rush has stayed afloat with Samson Ebukam, Cameron Thomas, and Za'Darius Smith holding down the fort in lieu of Pearce and Walker--while Brandon Dorlus, Maason Smith, and Gervon Dexter have generated most of the pressure from the interior, which is again a rarity.
Despite only rushing four, the Falcons are still finding ways to get home. Through three weeks of 2026, they currently lead the NFL with a 44.2% pressure rate and their 61% pass-rush win rate is third..
Dexter has been a reason as to why, as he logged six pressures and an 18.9% pressure rate in the Week 3 win over the Packers, tying him with Deone Walker with 14 pressures, which is the second-most among all IDLs through three weeks.
Perhaps the biggest test of how much this defensive is improved is how much they've improved against the run, as they're the league's top run defense by a wide margin. They aren't even allowing 50 rushing yards a game through three weeks.
Nate Ollie deserves just as much credit for the work done with this defensive line, but Ulbrich deserves head coaching consideration because he's still turned this Atlanta defense from one of the worst before he took over into one of the NFL's best overnight. And now the sample size is two years, with him weathering the storm amid some ill-fated issues off the edge this offseason.
Even the advanced stats are aware of just how dangerous this defense is.
According to SumerSports, here is where the Falcons' defense stands in most EPA metrics:
- EPA per play: -0.11 (T-7th in NFL)
- Total EPA: -20.08 (8th in NFL)
- EPA success rate: 37.97% (6th in NFL)
- EPA per pass: -0.04 (13th in NFL)
- EPA per rush: -0.29 (1st in NFL)
The Falcons are top 10 in the NFL in four of these five statistics and in the top half of the league of all five, and this is despite missing Pearce due to suspension, Walker to an ACL tear, and having A.J. Terrell look like a shell of himself. Yet Ulbrich is still making this group look better than ever.
The scary part about the idea of losing Ulbrich to a HC job is that he could bring Ollie along with him to be his defensive coordinator, which would rid the Falcons of their DC-in-waiting and the mastermind behind their DL success, but losing Ulbrich would be just as bad for this linebacker room.
Jeff Ulbrich still has his time as the interim head coach of the New York Jets on his resume, and while it's not pretty, it's something. Dan Campbell's time as an interim coach helped him get the Lions ' job, and it proves that he at least has the fortitude and the trust of the players to lead a locker room.
And given how elite this Atlanta Falcons' defense has been, it seems like only a matter of time before he gets his shot as a head coach.
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