When the Atlanta Falcons hired Raheem Morris almost two years ago, they missed out on a surplus of elite candidates who are thriving elsewhere. However, their coaching search came down to Morris and Bill Belichick, which saw Arthur Blank and Terry Fontenot decide to hire the 49-year-old coach.
The Super Bowl-winning head coach is amid a disastrous first season at North Carolina which has the Tar Heels at the center of some serious turmoil. Regardless, NFL teams still respect his coaching pedigree, and it was reported teams are still expected to have interest in Belichick this offseason.
The Dirty Birds could very well become key players in the head coaching cycle after the season, as Morris and Fontenot firmly on the hot seat with the Falcons sitting at 4-7. And if Michael Penix Jr.'s season-ending ACL tear was the final straw, it could see Blank turn to Belichick to right the ship.
Falcons would be making a serious mistake if they fire Raheem Morris for Bill Belichick
The 73-year-old mind is heralded as the greatest head coaches in NFL history due to his time with the Patriots, but hiring Belichick would make it even harder for Falcons fans to forget their collapse in Super Bowl LI against the Patriots. And that doesn't account for his 4-7 opening season in Chapel Hill.
Even though he has six rings on his résumé, Belichick went 4-13 in his final season in New England which opened the door for them to draft Drake Maye. As fantastic as his defenses were his prime, it's become clear that his coaching style doesn't resonate as well in locker rooms as it once did.
Moreover, his highly-publicized relationship with Jordon Hudson is blossoming into a PR disaster, and that isn't something any NFL owner should want to deal with. Blank, like everyone else in the football world, isn't Belichick's credentials, but firing a "safe" choice like Morris for a riskier, older alternative surely wouldn't go over well.
As for the Falcons, their roster isn't too far off from contending. It'e abundantly clear Morris isn't the right coach to help this team return to the playoffs, but if he is fired, a younger head coach like Klint Kubiak or Jesse Minter would be superior in tapping into the potential of an uber-talented roster.
Belichick has been at the center of NFL coaching rumors all season long, but it still looks like choosing Morris over him was a good decision. But if Blank opts to make a change this offseason, he could set the franchise back years in one fell swoop.