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Monday, January 21, 2008
Coach better be worth wait
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
The Falcons appear poised to wait until after the Super Bowl before naming a head coach - largely because the best potential candidate could be coaching in the championship game.
The Falcons have targeted New York Giants defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo but per NFL rules, Atlanta can’t interview him until after the Feb. 3 championship game.
The NFL allows assistant coaches to have second interviews for head coaching jobs with other teams during the down week of the two-week gap between conference championship games and the Super Bowl. However, Spagnuolo has not interviewed with Atlanta yet.
The Giants denied him permission two weeks ago because they were preparing to play Dallas in the divisional playoff.
Though there is some concern that previously interviewed candidates Rex Ryan (Baltimore defensive coordinator), Mike Smith (Jacksonville DC) and Leslie Frazier (Vikings DC) could get frustrated by having to wait, their only other head coaching option is Washington. So if the Falcons aren’t able to land Spagnuolo, the other candidates should still be available.
Ryan apparently is the leader in the clubhouse but Smith was said to be impressive as was Frazier, who had his first interview last weekend. Finding quality assistants and coordinators shouldn’t be a problem, either. There are simply too few vacancies now for the talent pool to get diluted.
On that note, Falcons’ officials will spend the next few days in Mobile evaluating college seniors and possibly talking to potential assistants - and maybe head-coaching candidates. The Senior Bowl is a fishbowl full of coaches, many of whom are out of work or are trying to find a new employer.
