DIMITROFF SILENCES DOUBTERS
Atlanta GM survives bad patches to get team on cusp of Super Bowl, writes Rob Longley.
It’s a long way from playing defensive back at M.M. Robinson High School in Burlington, Ont. to the doorstep of the Super Bowl, but that’s where Thomas Dimitroff finds himself today.
Of course, it has been a winding road for the Atlanta Falcons’ general manager, a two-time NFL executive of the year.
After the high school career in suburban Toronto, there were stops at Guelph University, where he played defence, Regina, where he scouted with the CFL Roughriders, Cleveland with the Browns and, ultimately, a football master’s course with the Patriots in New England.
That background allowed Dimitroff to graduate to Atlanta where billionaire owner Arthur Blank hired him to resurrect the woeful franchise in 2008.
The eight-plus years with the Falcons have included rocky moments, especially after a handful of less productive draft classes levelled out the franchise rebuild. And when the team went into the tank late last season, there was speculation Dimitroff could lose his job.
But a new union with secondyear head coach Dan Quinn has rather quickly put the Falcons back among the NFL’s elite.
Quinn, like Patriots coach Bill Belichick, has ultimate influence on roster decisions, an arrangement that has yielded swift success. If the shared duties with Quinn seem like a stripping of power for Dimitroff, so be it. The results have to be invigorating and ultimately could go down as a career-saver.
“One of the terms Thomas and (assistant GM Scott Pioli) and the guys in the office use is ‘DQ guys,’” Quinn said this week, referring to the type of players the Falcons now recruit. “They know what I mean by that — the toughness and the effort that we’re looking for.
“I think that having that connection that starts with (Dimitroff) and I, going down to the assistant coaches, we’re all talking the same language and looking for the same thing. I think that’s been a real factor that internally we definitely feel.”
It certainly didn’t feel that way a year ago, however, as the Falcons finished 8-8 and out of the playoffs despite a 5-0 start. The new Atlanta brain trust never wavered, however, recognizing the defence was young and building, while quarterback Matt Ryan had an off year.
That patience paid off spectacularly in a 2016 season in which the rejuvenated Ryan led the team to an 11-5 record and first-place in the NFC South. As a result, they don’t have to leave the Peach State, playing host to Sunday’s NFC title game against Green Bay.
What Dimitroff quickly learned is the type of player Quinn covets is the same Belichick covets. These players possess qualities the no-nonsense Tom Dimitroff Sr. drilled into Dimitroff, as well. The emphasis is on toughness, both mental and physical.
Quinn’s playoff buzz phrase has been “arrive violently,” a philosophy that worked when he was defensive co-ordinator for the Seattle Seahawks. Acquiring players who hit hard and bring speed to the attack is certainly showing value with the explosive Atlanta offence. The young Falcons defence is starting to come around as well, boding well for the future.
“It was very intentional with (Dimitroff) and I to add speed to the team,” Quinn said. “It helps create more turnovers. The way we want to tackle defensively especially, it’s been a big factor for us.”
It’s taken some time since Dimitroff made a splash with his first move, drafting Ryan third overall in the 2008 draft, but the Falcons are where owner Blank hoped they would be when he took a shot on a young, unheralded executive.
The success this season led to a three-year contract extension for Dimitroff in November. And despite some initial skepticism, the Dimitroff- Quinn tandem is off to a rousing start. Both have tasted Super Bowl success in lesser roles with their former teams.
And both have only Aaron Rodgers and the Packers standing in the way of a return to the big game.
“Honestly, just so pumped to be part of this team and to see our team grow and improving as we’re going,” Quinn said Friday, when asked about advancing to the NFC Championship in just his second year as a head coach. “That’s what excites me the most.
“I thought about six weeks ago we had a shift after a game against Kansas City, and then I felt it again during our bye week in terms of the preparation going to a new spot.”