THE DC SEARCH: Spagnuolo, Nolan are of interest
Former St. Louis Coach Steve Spagnuolo had a great defense in New York. (Seth Perlman / Associated Press)
The top two candidates for the vacant defensive coordinator position are Steve Spagnuolo and Mike Nolan.
Despite revamping the secondary and trying to bolster the pass rush, the Falcons struggled to improve their pass defense. Since 2008, they’ve ranked 21st (2008, 220.4), 28th (2009, 241.9), 22nd (2010, 226.6) and 20th (2011, 236.6).
“Moving forward, this defense needs to continue its growth and evolution as a passionate and fiery defense, one that is going to fly to the football, disrupt, be opportunistic and capitalized on opportunities to turn the game around; flip the game in critical situations,” Dimitroff said. “We’ll look for a coordinator who will [aid] Coach Smith and his approach to putting that type of aggressive defense on the field.”
Having previous ties to Smith is not a prerequisite.
“Obviously, that coordinator is going to work hand-and-hand with Mike Smith in helping to create a very aggressive defense,” Dimitroff said. “Our hope is that we will, in the very near future, land that individual who we think is very appropriate with his approach to helping this defense grow.”
Among the hot names being mentioned for defensive coordinator in coaches’ agent circles are former St. Louis coach Steve Spagnuolo and Mike Nolan. Former Jacksonville coach Jack Del Rio and Smith have worked together in the past, but a reunion is not likely.
The Falcons could get into a bidding war for Spagnuolo, who’s also being courted by the Philadelphia Eagles. He was an assistant coach for the Eagles from 1999-2006.
Spagnuolo is especially attractive to the Falcons because his defenses have performed well in the playoffs. When Spagnuolo was coordinator for the New York Giants, his defense stopped the 18-0 New England Patriots and sacked Tom Brady five times in Super Bowl XLII.
Nolan is considered a 3-4 coach. But Smith’s respect him from their days together in Baltimore runs deep. They could likely mold the principles of Nolan’s 3-4 with Smith’s 4-3 if necessary.
When the team does hire new coordinators, team owner Arthur Blank expects them bring a new set of eyes and expertise to the team.
“Their ability . . . to be totally objective, cold-hearted and unemotional about the young men that we have on the roster [should be an asset],” Blank said. “[We’ll] bring in some folks that will be able to give us maybe some new perspective, maybe some different perspective not only on team questions, but on player issues that we may have as well.”
–D. Orlando Ledbetter, The Atlanta Falcons beat blog
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251 comments Add your comment
Dds16To80
January 14th, 2012
10:51 pm
Now maybe all you Saints fans can slow down with the “2Dats” or whatever idiotic nonsense you keep spouting ad nauseum. Maybe you can just be happy with 9Dat. That is, the amount of times you’ve made the playoffs in 44 years as a franchise. LOL!
Katherine
January 14th, 2012
10:51 pm
Can I just say that LSU and the Saints losing in the same week…made my week?
SawThat1nce
January 14th, 2012
10:55 pm
@10:43……Yeah, the 49ers are a very good team, and the saints played a very tough game.
But, they still got beat. The end of their season. Out of the running.
Michael M.
January 14th, 2012
10:58 pm
LSU got beat too ? wow,………….I have been too busy this week ! Seems like some of them aint lovers was bragging on those two teams and how they was going to win, going on at us and our teams being terrible …..well, if you get beat then you are terrible too cause you lost ! Don’t feel so good when the shoe is on the other fella s foot for a change does it out there guys?
SawThat1nce
January 14th, 2012
11:00 pm
Clear as day@9:27pm……”If the 49ers are better than San Fran”.
What? That is not very clear.
Katherine
January 14th, 2012
11:04 pm
I doubt we’ll see any aint fans on here ragging on uga or the falcons for awhile…lsu got blown out and looked awful and the saints only made it one game further than the falcons…so……no more stupid “who dat’ or “geaux tigers”
Michael M.
January 14th, 2012
11:07 pm
I saw that ^^^^^ too but passed on it……………….honestly thought the Saints had it wrapped up at the end when they got the touch and 2 points ,said no way the niners get a touch in so little time but lo and behold ha! ha! ha! ha
! ha !
Michael M.
January 14th, 2012
11:10 pm
TY Katherine for posting on LSU I didn’t know bout that………and good………….they need a taste of their own medicine for a change!
Monday Morning QB
January 14th, 2012
11:15 pm
I’ve SeenThisB4, The Aints travel out west and come home a loser again. In the Saints defense, oh I forgot they have no defense. On the bright side the 49′ers do have a winning record and Frank Gore did not run over every Saint defensive player (ala Marshawn Lynch) so I guess we can call this improvement.
Gene Cheesydit..
January 14th, 2012
11:16 pm
Hire Saban’s little buddy….
Michael M.
January 14th, 2012
11:17 pm
Its deja vu………………………..ha ! ha ! ha ! ha !
Mollie B
January 14th, 2012
11:25 pm
Willie Martinez, remember his philosophy is “Wait and react” to the other team scoring again.
JSS
January 15th, 2012
1:00 am
“JSS, what does that have to do with anything?????”
Well, you obviously missed the whole silly season that accompanies certain bloggers who make it their duty to tell everyone that the only way that Atlanta sport teams can draw fans is building stadiums in the “so-called demographic of the other Northern suburbs?” That includes a number of comments in this section of comments. No one forced you to move to the hinterlands, it was a choice. The Falcons moved to Flowery Branch, after spending time in Suwanee. Every move, further and further away. Hey, I go to Road Atlanta frequently for events. It is hell to get to. Gwinnett Arena is convenient to nothing. The real demographic growth (now stifled by the economic downturn) is to the NW counties (Cherokee). The heyday of the Gwinnett-Hall population boom is over. So even though all realistic studies have shown that particular cry is foolish, it persists. Doraville wanted no part of the whole mess, that is why they forcefully took the GM property out of consideration. Go ask the good people of Pontiac Michigan about building a 75,000 seat arena will do for you. Instead of crying about the inconvenience, live with the choice you made, everyone else does…
Joey
January 15th, 2012
8:16 am
Ledbetter: “The Falcons couldn’t “knock back the line of scrimmage” on a couple of short-yardage situations when they had a difficult time blocking the Giants’ strong front seven.
D Orlando, if everybody knew about this “strong front seven,” why were trying to play Smith’s idiotic, “power football?”
How about make a game plan that exploits an opponent’s WEAKNESSES, not STRENGTHS?
I hope one day one to see the Falcons, not the Patriots, not the Packers, not the Saints, etc, get one of those brilliant, innovative coaches – you know, the kind of coach whose team goes through us like a dose of salts.
I’ve about had my fill of watching this 40 year old offense plod along, until it meets a playoff team and gets embarrassed
Mr Zizzle
January 15th, 2012
8:20 am
I enjoyed seeing the Saints Choke against the 49ers! Ha Ha Ha Ha! Class-less team!!!! LOL!
Sad Truth
January 15th, 2012
8:47 am
Glad to see the Saints lose but if the 49ers are better than N.O. then what does that say about the Falcons? What’s the point of reaching the playoffs if you have no shot at winning? The Saints scored 32pts. against the best D in the NFC and still lost. We couldn’t even manage 1 offensive point against the 27th ranked defense.
Nativebird
January 15th, 2012
8:51 am
Slags, Nolan, Billick, Del Rio…..all of them are material upgrades from the 1980’s mentality coordinators we had. One note to remember Falcon fans…defense was not the critical problem this team had. In 2012 era NFL footbal, if your offense can’t put up 34 points a game range on average, you’re not going anywhere.
SawThat1nce
January 15th, 2012
9:35 am
Name change makes it Clear as day.
Bro
January 15th, 2012
9:45 am
NO MATTER WHO THE DC IS THERE MUST BE SOME FORM OF A PASS RUSH.
gary32
January 15th, 2012
10:19 am
Is it me or does Jimmy Graham look like a grown up version of the banjo player from deliverance?? Oh and congratulations to Saints….5th straight playoff loss on the road…..priceless
House Man
January 15th, 2012
10:30 am
JSS – you have the wrong man. You’re confusing me with another blogger
Preston Thompson
January 15th, 2012
10:36 am
Speaking of DC that just have it going on. Did any of you see the SF game yesterday and what their defense did to the Saints. Holy cow, does that crowd hit. And the DB ain’t skeerd of nuttin. I mean those folks hit and hit and hit again. Why not here?
JoeBrave
January 15th, 2012
10:42 am
Saints, LSU, and Teblow all go down in the same week! I am lovin this!
JoeBrave
January 15th, 2012
10:43 am
Now Roll Giants, take that Prima Donna Rogers to skewl!!!!
Falcon Fan
January 15th, 2012
10:46 am
Former Jacksonville Jags OC is the new OC for the Falcons according to Mort about 10 minutes ago. Should have known the Falcons would go on the cheap. All the other OC candidates was a front. They weren’t going to spend any money. Good luck getting a big name DC in here as well.
SickandTired
January 15th, 2012
10:52 am
Well now, it is so satisfying to see the little jack leg Sean P. lose. The arrogance of his QB with the nasty mark on his face and his play calling self, make it so wonderful to see them lose……running up the score against already defeated opponents shows lack of class and I hope that team implodes from within. He’s losing his “genius” defensive jack leg Williams to St. Louis….who by the way couldn’t stop anybody the last two weeks……..Hey Saints, congratulations on getting eliminated in a year when the referees gave you every advantage you could possibly have.
Falcons4Eva
January 15th, 2012
10:53 am
DLED – Asleep at the wheel again.. No surprise there! Getting scooped by Chris Morteson.
Falcons4Eva
January 15th, 2012
10:56 am
@ Falcon Fan . . . .
I respectfully disagree….I don’t think it was a money thing. Blank is not cheap.
If anything, it is an ineptness on the part of his Staff *Dimitroff and Smith ! 1
Smith is too stubborn to accept that this is the NEW NFL! and he’s comfortable with someone who used Maurice Jones-Drew like he would Michael Turner….It will not work. That old fashion offense has passed Coach Smith buy.
Falcons4Eva
January 15th, 2012
10:57 am
Smith seems to be stuck in a time warp to 1970’s football. 3 yards and a cloud of dust.
This team is no where near physical to run that kind of offense…(see 2 points last game)>
Falcons4Eva
January 15th, 2012
10:59 am
Watch the Falcons spin team (Dimitroff, Blank and Smith) try to talk about what this guy did back when he ran Boise State….
As we say in the south…..That Dog Won’t Hunt ! !
Falcon Fan
January 15th, 2012
11:02 am
All the reports are starting to pop up now……Koetter didn’t really have anything to work with in Jacksonville. We will see if this is the right hire. Falcons4Eva, I really didn’t follow the Jags to know if he is good or not so maybe that was a lazy statement by me, but I was hoping for a bigger name. Anything associated with Green Bays offense would have been great. They plugged in their backup qb for one game this year and he did great. That means that the offensive system the Packers runs is a good one. I saw the same thing with New England when Cassel had the starting job when Brady got hurt……
More of the same
January 15th, 2012
11:02 am
It sounds like we just signed an OC with the same philosophy as Mularkey. I hate this stupid organization.
SirReal
January 15th, 2012
11:04 am
@Falcon Fan Is that official? I havent heard that yet. If so, I wont judge what I don’t know. I honestly dont know anything about the guy. Again though, is that OFFICIAL?lol (I wanted Billick.lol)
Michael M.
January 15th, 2012
11:11 am
Still laughing at the Saints blowing it last night…………….ha ! ha ! ha ! ha ! ha ! ha !…………..who dat ?
who dat ? hilarious ! you Saint Trolls still got the polish out for them super bowl rings ? ha ! ha ! ha !
Michael M.
January 15th, 2012
11:14 am
Alex Smith look like Joe Montana out there last night…….this is awesome !
JSS
January 15th, 2012
11:25 am
House Man
January 15th, 2012
10:30 am
“JSS – you have the wrong man. You’re confusing me with another blogger”
You ask what the comment meant. I was answering it… I’d already answered who the original comment was intended for… That is why it is a called “thread.’
Falcon Fan
January 15th, 2012
11:28 am
SirReal it is being reported on ESPN and NFL.com now, I think it’s official.
Michael M.
January 15th, 2012
11:30 am
Joe Montana had ”The Catch.” Steve Young had ”The Catch II.” Now, Smith added another epic play to the 49ers’ storied history: ”The Grab.” and so it goes………………………………lmao !
Lamar
January 15th, 2012
7:46 pm
NO DC WILL EVER TEACH DUNTA ROBINSON TO COVER ANYBODY!! HE WAS A HUGE FREE AGENT THIS YEAR, BUT IF HIS SALARY WAS FREE, AS IN THE FREE AGENCY, THEN THEY GOT THEIR MONEYS WORTH!! IF HE GOT PAID, TALK ABOUT NOT EARNING IT!! ROBINSON = WORST CB IN THE NFL! HE HAS TO GO!!
Falcon Fan 24-7
January 15th, 2012
8:34 pm
A Georgia man allegedly shot at two football fans in a restaurant parking lot — critically injuring one — because he took offense to their cheering for the San Francisco 49ers as they faced off against the New Orleans Saints.
Donald Ray Ayro, 31, was being held without bond Sunday after the incident, according to a police press release.
Corey Adams, 30, told WSB-TV that he and friend Chris Middleton, also 30, were confronted by Ayro inside an Applebee’s restaurant in Duluth, Ga., as they celebrated a 49ers touchdown in the playoff game.
“The only thing me and my buddy said was, we were excited that the 49ers scored,” Adams said. “It was only one touchdown.”
According to Adams, the Saints fan then left but told the men he would return.
About 90 minutes later, Ayro allegedly fired gunshots at Adams and Middleton in the restaurant’s parking lot.
“I took off running and he started shooting at me and shot like four or five times and he grazed the back of my head,” Adams told WSB.
Middleton was shot in the chest. He was taken to nearby Gwinnett Medical Center in critical condition.
Police found Ayro through Adams’ description of him and his vehicle. He was arrested and charged with two counts of aggravated assault, possession of a firearm by a felon and possession of a firearm during the commission of a felony, police said.
The 49ers beat the Saints 36-32 Saturday.
SeenThis B4
January 16th, 2012
12:51 pm
@Michael: You think Alex Smith looked like Joe Montana? Really? LMAO!
Who did Joe Flacco look like to you? Steve Young? Didn’t he get drafted well after Ryan? And he’s what in the playoffs? 5 & 3?
Even Alex Smith and Tim Tebow have better winning percentage in the playoffs….even Tim Tebow!
Adam
January 16th, 2012
1:08 pm
@ I’m Gumby, Dammit!!
January 13th, 2012
8:56 am
LOL
Adam
January 16th, 2012
1:13 pm
Lamar, I might reserve opinion on dunta Robinson simply because he has always been known as a cover corner, but throughout his tenure here so far, he has been placed in a soft zone by BVG. And waaaaay too often he would turn that receiver over t the next zone (Thomas DeCoud’s) and it would be vacated because our FS decided to bite on a play fake or just got outright lost in coverage. Not saying DR never got beat, but more times than not it was schematic.
Spags to Saints
January 16th, 2012
1:13 pm
whoops – looks like your enjoyment of the Saints loss is short-lived. Just means we get Spags now, sweet! Can’t wait to see his defense to back up Brees…..
Maybe you can get Juan Castillo, if he is willing to come to ‘choke’lanta
Fifty something
January 16th, 2012
6:04 pm
The best defensive coach you have never heard of is Jim Tomsula of the San Francisco 49′ers. He was a head coach in the NFL Europe before it closed. Not only was he chosen to replace Singletary and then promise a win — with a team that could have easily coasted to another defeat. Harbaugh deserves the credit, but Tomsula handed him players willing to listen again. His defensive line allowed no rushing until the last game and HIS TEAM IS STILL PLAYING. Let’s seek a coach who can step up to the next level and bring the players and team with him. Jim Tomsula would be great.
Matty
January 16th, 2012
7:57 pm
Get nolan, teach bierman to be an inside linebacker and we play as a 3-4 dome team! We have the linebackers and the speed to be bad a$$! We just need to get rid of Robinson and we r all set! Do it TD! Do it do it!
darock
January 16th, 2012
10:10 pm
You guys are forgetting that there is still some good DC that is not in football right now. Just 4yrs ago a man by the name of Mike Singletarty was inviewed for the HC job here and went on to put together a good defense out in San Fran. The offense was his problem with a very young QB who has develop under a former QB. The defense was never their problem in San Fran. and remember they almost beat us here last year if it was not for Roddy White causing a fumble . Singletary is the coach we need to instill some heart under these guys and hold them accountable for their mistakes on the field. I do not think he would have a problem scouting our team and getting rid some players who do not fit his scheme because this buddy BS is not going to work here. Everyone now winning a Super Bowl is a good 5yr window with today’s salary cap. We are going into year 5 with this team and its about to be depleted soon.
Gritsfalcon
January 16th, 2012
11:40 pm
Okay fans, here is a quiz: Which is worse your MLB teams meltdown when they are a “sure thing” to make the playoffs? Or, Your NFL team being a laughing stock the last two years in the playoffs? Hmmm? Authur Blank’s comments don’t amount to a “hill of beans.” Part of me wants the ‘birds to 5 – 11 next year just to get Mike Smith and the whole crew out of town!
Long story short, both professional sports teams front offices are full of “hot air.”
Somebody wake me when the nightmare’s have ended.
Steve-O
January 17th, 2012
9:24 am
SeenThis B4
January 16th, 2012
12:51 pm
@Michael: You think Alex Smith looked like Joe Montana? Really? LMAO!
Who did Joe Flacco look like to you? Steve Young? Didn’t he get drafted well after Ryan? And he’s what in the playoffs? 5 & 3?
Even Alex Smith and Tim Tebow have better winning percentage in the playoffs….even Tim Tebow!
__________________________________________________________________________________
Ah yes, Stains trolls trolling the AJC.
I didn’t realize that Ryan had to play all 21 other positions as well as kick off, punt, and play special teams. It’s amazing that Alex Smith and Tim Tebow manage to do that? How do you think they pull that off, Seen?
Ronald Millsaps
January 17th, 2012
5:02 pm
I don’t dislike this move but wonder just how patient the team was in this process. I really think the team could’ve done better with its OC hire but will be fair in that the man has had a team in transition and instability at quarterback.
Hire Mike Kenn as offensive-line coach, Chris Chandler as quarterbacks coach. Move Smith to the front office, and make Jack Del Rio the head coach.