The Atlanta Falcons have announced that they have appointed the offensive coordinator of the Tennessee Titans, Arthur Smith team’s next head coach. Smith has spent the past ten seasons in Tennessee from the offensive and defensive quality control coach to his current role.
Smith has been a hot head coach candidate this season after the work he has done with Ryan Tannehill since becoming the Titans quarterback in Week 7 of the 2019 season. Tannehill is first in the league in yards per attempt (8.5), third in touchdowns (550) and third in passer-point (111.3) among NFL backs since becoming the Titans starter – some of the best numbers in the NFL on the position. Derrick Henry has chased the NFL by 3,565 yards over the past two seasons (875 more than the second on the list, Dalvin Cook). The Titans offense was under Smith’s lead in 2020 for the second point in total per game (396.4) and fourth in points per game (30.7).
The North Carolina native is the son of FedEx founder Frederick W. Smith. Teams looking for a leader leader would have found a natural fit in the Titans’ playmaker. He is likely to move to Atlanta to work for Home Depot founder Arthur Blank.
Tennessee’s season ended in the Super Wild-Card round against the Ravens, so Smith was free to explore other opportunities.
Atlanta decided in October to move from head coach Dan Quinn to the team’s first 0-5 start since 1997. Raheem Morris accepts the interim role and leads the team to a 4-12 finish. They are also in the midst of a general manager search.
The NFL saw quite a few moves this week when the 49ers Jers Robert Saleh, 49ers defense coordinator, was the next head coach and appointed the Jaguars Urban Meyer as their next head coach. The Eagles, Chargers, Texans and Lions still have vacant head coaches.