Falcons pick Titans OC as coach
ATLANTA — The Atlanta Falcons agreed to terms with Tennessee Titans offensive coordinator Arthur Smith on Friday to become the team’s head coach.
The Falcons announced the agreement. Smith held a virtual interview with the team on Monday and he also interviewed with the New York Jets and Detroit Lions. The Jets reached an agreement with Robert Saleh on Thursday night to be their coach.
The 38-year-old Smith has served on the Tennessee staff for 10 seasons, including two as offensive coordinator. The Titans finished this season tied for second in the NFL in total yards.
Under Smith’s leadership, the Titans finished behind only Kansas City in total offense with 396.4 yards. They had the NFL’S second-best rushing offense as Derrick Henry became only the eighth back to rush for at least 2,000 yards.
Atlanta’s choice of Smith was applauded by Titans wide receiver A.J. Brown, who said on his Twitter account “Held me accountable from day 1. Always trying to improve. Atlanta got a good one.”
The Titans’ offensive success, especially on
the ground, may have been especially appealing to the Falcons, who finished ahead of only five teams in rushing this season. The Falcons averaged only 95.8 yards rushing per game.
Smith, who has no experience as a head coach, will face important decisions about the offense. Quarterback Matt Ryan is 35 and wide receiver Julio Jones, coming off a season hampered by injuries, is 31.
Falcons owner Arthur Blank has said the team’s new coach and general manager will be free to make decisions on a possible rebuild that could impact all players, including Ryan and Jones.
The Titans went 11-5 to win the AFC South, but were eliminated from the playoffs Sunday with a 20-13 loss to Baltimore. It was Tennessee’s fewest points of the season.
The Falcons also are seeking a replacement for general manager Thomas Dimitroff, who was fired along with coach Dan Quinn following an 0-5 start that led to a 4-12 finish. Quinn was hired as the Dallas
Cowboys’ defensive coordinator on Monday.
Quinn left Atlanta with an overall record of 43-42, including a 1423 mark since the beginning of the 2018 season. He was 3-2 in two postseason appearances.
Smith was one of seven candidates to interview with Atlanta, including interim coach Raheem Morris.
Other offensive coordinators to interview with the Falcons were Green Bay’s Nathaniel Hackett, Carolina’s Joe Brady and Kansas City’s Eric Bieniemy. Saleh and Tampa Bay defensive coordinator Todd Bowles also interviewed for the job.
Morris went 4-7 as the interim coach.
Smith coached Tennessee’s tight ends before his promotion to offensive coordinator.
He worked under four head coaches at Tennessee after he was hired as a defensive assistant and quality control coach in 2011. He also was an offensive assistant/quality control coach (2012), offensive line/tight ends assistant (2013) and assistant tight ends coach (2014-15). He took over as tight ends coach in 2015.
In 2019, Smith helped
the Titans rebound from a 2-4 start to advance to the AFC championship game for the first time in 17 years.
Smith helped the Titans offense gain momentum with quarterback Ryan Tannehill as the starter. Over the final 11 weeks of the 2019 season, Tennessee ranked third in the league in total offense and scoring.
Smith, a native of Memphis, Tenn., worked under coach Joe Gibbs as Washington’s defensive quality control coach from 2007-08. He spent 2010 as an administrative assistant at Mississippi
before returning to the NFL.
One candidate to become the Falcons general manager is New Orleans Saints executive Terry Fontenot. The Falcons have had a virtual interview with Fontenot, the Saints’ vice president and assistant general manager of pro personnel, but are unable to conduct an inperson interview while New Orleans is alive in the playoffs.
Fontenot has been with the Saints for 16 seasons and would become Atlanta’s first Black general manager.