Dan Quinn and Thomas Dimitroff are under contract through the 2022 season. Yet there the two Falcons’ co-team builders were, sitting down for a news conference that followed a Dec. 29 announcement that they would be retained for the 2020 season as opposed to being relieved of their duties.
There were two conclusions that could be taken from that scene.
1) Falcons owner Arthur Blank at least thought about the possibility of firing either Quinn or Dimitroff during a 2019 season that ended with a 7-9 record while beginning with a 1-7 start. If that wasn’t the case, there is no news conference.
2) The fact that Blank made such a public announcement -- to go with the additional sit-down interview he did with the team’s website -- suggests the 2020 season will be critical when it comes to both Quinn and Dimitroff’s future with the franchise.
The same day that Quinn and Dimitroff took questions from reporters about the situation, Blank did the same alongside team president Rich McKay. Blank said the expectation is for the Falcons to reach the playoffs, which he affirmed to Quinn. He also said the biggest criticism he had was that Quinn didn’t adjust to last season’s poor start quickly enough. Those adjustments included moving Raheem Morris from receivers coach to defensive backs coach and passing play-calling duties on to both Morris and linebackers coach Jeff Ulbrich.
“I think Dan is the kind of person that he reads a lot, he studies a lot, he’s very self-aware,” Blank said in December. "I don’t think he’s the kind of coach that will make the same mistake again in that regard. I think with Rich involved on a day-to-day basis working with him, working with Thomas, that will help as well. You bring 25 years of experience to the organization, back on the football side of the business, which is obviously Rich’s strength and his history, as well.
“I think that Dan has corrected the things that need to be corrected, has fixed the things that need to be fixed. There’s always going to be something if you will, but I think we’re in a really good place with him now.”
Last year, Quinn began the 2019 offseason by firing offensive coordinator Steve Sarkisian and special-teams coordinator Keith Armstrong. He decided not to extend defensive coordinator Marquand Manuel’s contract, which expired after that season. Then, Quinn said he wanted the Falcons to be more physical in all phases, which was the reason for the coaching turnover. Dirk Koetter and Ben Kotwica were brought on board, with Quinn taking responsibility of the defense.
Of course, the 2019 season got out to such a rocky start that there was some speculation that Blank might consider an in-season coaching change.
After Quinn adjusted his coaching staff during the bye week, the Falcons finished 6-2 over the final eight games. This finish, and particularly a road win over the San Francisco 49ers, gave Blank enough confidence to keep Quinn and Dimitroff in their roles. And this time around, not much is changing. Only two coaches were dismissed this offseason -- defensive passing-game coordinator Jerome Henderson (now with the New York Giants) and assistant defensive line coach Travis Jones.
Quinn’s only on-field coaching hires were defensive backs coach Joe Whitt Jr. and defensive ends coach Tosh Lupoi. And much of what the team did during the 6-2 stretch to close the year will remain the same. For example, Morris and Ulbrich will continue to share play-calling responsibilities, even while Morris was promoted to defensive coordinator. Ulbrich said that sometimes teams can change or tweak too much during an offseason.
Perhaps the Falcons learned the hard way during last season’s rough start.
“That can get you in trouble in this league,” Ulbrich said. “There’s so much at stake. You want to be successful so bad that sometimes you overthink it. You think, ‘OK, we should change it and do things better.’ Sometimes, don’t fix it if it’s not broken. Just improve what we’ve got.”
Last offseason, Dimitroff wanted to address an offensive line that allowed Matt Ryan to be sacked 42 times. They signed James Carpenter (four years, $21 million) and Jamon Brown (three years, $18.75 million) in free agency to add depth up front. They then drafted Chris Lindstrom with the 14th overall pick and traded up to take Kaleb McGary 31st overall. However, nothing went as planned up front as injuries forced the Falcons to cycle through multiple lineups. This resulted in Ryan being sacked a career-most 48 times.
While Lindstrom and McGary are set to start at right guard and right tackle, respectively, the Falcons released Brown this preseason. Carpenter, who started 11 games in 2019, has been battling for his starting job with rookie Matt Hennessy, who was selected in the third round this year.
In addition, Dimitroff parted ways with running back Devonta Freeman and signed Todd Gurley. With Austin Hooper leaving via free agency, Dimitroff executed a trade for Hayden Hurst. He added defensive end Dante Fowler, coming off of an 11.5-sack season with the Los Angeles Rams, to the pass-rushing unit. He also released veteran cornerback Desmond Trufant and drafted A.J. Terrell in the first round to be his replacement. Dimitroff certainly will hope his offseason work leads to Quinn coaching this team to enough victories so that they don’t find themselves in a familiar position in late December.
And the best way for both Quinn and Dimitroff to ensure they remain with the franchise in 2021 is to reach the postseason.
Preparing for the season opener against the Seattle Seahawks, at 1 p.m. Sunday, Quinn didn’t want to peer ahead when asked if he felt the same as Blank about reaching the playoffs. Still, it’s apparent Quinn knows how vital this season will be to everyone on staff.
“I’d say No. 1, the standard I would hope our team could play to would be a lot stronger than anybody else would place on me,” Quinn said. “I’m just going after it, man, as hard as I can. We’ve had a hell of a training camp, and that will allow us to play well as we enter into the season … I don’t look too far down the line.”
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