Ian Cunningham hasn't taken long to stamp his imprint on this Atlanta Falcons' front office. He made it clear that his philosophy is vastly different from Terry Fontenot's, and has stopped at nothing to rid the Falcons of Fontenot's influence-- which is the first step towards instilling his own vision in Atlanta.
Cunningham is expected to add a right-hand man more in line with his vision, but there has been a mass exodus in the front office. Assistant GM Kyle Smith left for Miami, and per NFL Network's Tom Pelissero, the Falcons are parting ways with VP of football operation and player personnel Ryan Pace.
Pace was the general manager of the Chicago Bears from 2015 until 2021, and joined Atlanta's front office quickly thereafter. The Dirty Birds mainly hired him because of his relationship with Fontenot, as they're longtime friends and colleagues because of their time working together in New Orleans.
Given the circumstances, it would've been pretty awkward for Pace to stick around with a new GM coming to town, especially because of Fontenot's unceremonious exit. And to make matters worse, the new shot-caller is the right-hand man of the executive who replaced him as the GM of the Bears.
The Falcons are parting ways with high-ranking executive Ryan Pace in one of Ian Cunningham's first major moves as GM
Pace spent the last four seasons in the Falcons' front office, including the last two as the VP of football operations and player personnel and the 48-year-old spent 2023 as the director of football operations. That's a pretty notable track record for a guy who was pretty middle of the road as a GM.
Given Cunningham had a front-row seat to the mess Pace left behind in Chicago, he was never truly likely to return. The Bears eventually completed their rebuild, but the 40-year-old and Ryan Poles inherited a nightmare situation they were only able to turn around because one of the most lopsided trades in NFL history.
Now, Cunningham has two major two front office vacancies to fill: assistant GM and VP of football operations. It's unknown how this search will shake out, but former New York Jets general manager Joe Douglas has emerged as a popular candidate to join the front office in a high profile capacity.
Due to his experience and past ties to Cunningham, Douglas could come on board as the assistant GM, but Pace's position might be a better fit so they're not invested too much trust in another failed GM. Either way, the Falcons' laundry list of front office choices for Cunningham is only getting longer.