Arthur Smith said he would name his own plays as the new coach of the Atlanta Falcons. But Smith and new general manager Terry Fontenot have both insisted they work together to compile the Hawks’ roster while both report to team president Rich McKay.
Both Smith and Fontenot also insisted that it was far too soon to make definitive statements about the future of players like Matt Ryan and Julio Jones, while they were formally presented to the media on Tuesday by Hawks owner Arthur Blank.
The Falcons have also not yet announced their hiring coaches.
“I can not give you a quick verdict today because we are still early in this process,” the 38-year-old Smith said. He has worked with the Tennessee Titans for the past ten seasons under four different head coaches – including the last two as offensive coordinator.
Smith did emphasize that Ryan “was a great quarterback, and I have all the respect in the world for Matt Ryan, and I look forward to working with him.”
However, Smith added: “It’s more than Matt and Julio. There are a lot of talented players on this roster, whether you’re talking about Chris Lindstrom, Grady Jarrett … I mean, there are so many players.”
Smith also made it clear that he would build the strengths of the players on Atlanta’s team, rather than trying to repeat the 2000-year-old stormy season that Derrick Henry had just under his watch in Tennessee. He pointed out that the Cleveland Browns, for example, have an excellent two-man tandem.
“We have adapted to Derrick, but there is only one Derrick Henry,” Smith said. ‘He’s like having Shaquille O’Neal at his best. You need to feed the large fella. And we certainly did that in Tennessee.
Blank and McKay stressed during the hiring process that they would not prescribe any roster decisions to the new GM and coach. Blank said he believes the Hawks could realistically jump from the worst to the first in the NFC South after the team was more competitive than its 4-12 record in 2020 suggested. think they were better than the team that was 7-9 in 2018 and 2019.
They said the goal in Atlanta is ‘continued success’ after firing coach Dan Quinn and GM Thomas Dimitroff, who led the Hawks to the 2016 Super Bowl.
Fontenot and Blank also discussed that ‘sustained success’ is the most important focus point.
“We are not going to make decisions that will help us in 2021, but will hurt us in 22 and 23,” Fontenot said. For the past 18 years, he has ascended the ranks of the professional staff division for rival New Orleans. Saints. “I know there are a lot of good players on this roster and I know there are some areas we need to pay attention to.”
According to ESPN’s roster management system, the Hawks will amount to more than $ 30 million in 2021 over the reduced salary cap in 2021, with only 31 contracts on the roster.
They also have the number 4 choice in the draft.
Fontenot and Smith did not know each other before – but both talked a lot about the impressions they got during the rental process. And Blank said that each recommends the other for their respective positions.
Blank said he was impressed with Smith’s success in Tennessee; by the fact that three new coaches have all chosen to keep Smith on staff and promote him on the right track; and according to the recommendations he received from people, including Joe Gibbs. Smith was in Gibbs’ staff in Washington early in his career.
“I could not be more excited about Arthur Smith. He is special,” Fontenot added. “I think the most important thing, the most important factor with the right head coach, is to have the right leader of men. He’s a good man, he can connect with players, he can make contact with everyone in the building, he will be a good communicator. He is very intelligent and adaptable. “
Fontenot interviewed four different teams for their GM work during this cycle, but said he knows the Falcons even better than most because he has studied them for so long as a competitor of the division. Blank talked a lot about the perspective Fontenot brought, as well as his winning background while working with demanding people like coach Sean Payton and general manager Mickey Loomis. Fontenot was stunned during his introductory video conference when he spoke about the opportunity Loomis gave him to join the Saints’ reconnaissance division when he was a 22-year-old marketing intern from his days as a security guard at Tulane University in New Orleans .
And the Louisiana native said his family is already “blooming black and red” and showing off his kids in their Hawks gear.
Fontenot, 40, is now the fourth black general manager in the NFL and the second to be appointed in this cycle, along with Brad Holmes of the Detroit Lions.
“It’s really a blessing. But I do not see it as an achievement, I see it as an opportunity,” Fontenot said. “And I see it as a challenge because I have to be successful. I have to do things right and work and be successful – or it’s not fair to the people who’re going to follow me. You know, my son’s a 9 year old and he’s going to be a GM. That’s what he’s already told me, so I need to make sure I work a certain way and that I do things the right way will have a wonderful opportunity when it’s time. ‘