Those lucky Falcons: Mike Mularkey goes to Jacksonville
Double M leaves! Touchdown! (AJC photo by Curtis Compton)
The Jacksonville Jaguars, for reasons unclear, have hired Mike Mularkey as head coach. That means the Atlanta Falcons lucked out. They’ve been spared having to fire him as offensive coordinator.
The belief here was that Double M, as he’s known, wasn’t going to be retained, but that’s not to say the decision would have been painless. The Falcons won a lot of (regular-season) games with Mularkey overseeing the offense, and it’s never easy to break a winning pattern even if you know the pattern needs breaking.
Moot point now, though. Mularkey is gone, same as defensive coordinator Brian VanGorder. The Falcons have two key hires to make this offseason, and the offensive position is surely the more important. In the end, offensive failings undid this talented aggregation. The Falcons need to find a man who could make these glittering pieces more of a whole.
Mike Martz is a name that keeps surfacing, but I might look first to Rick Neuheisel, who was just fired as UCLA’s head coach but who’s an offensive man by trade and who worked as coordinator for the Baltimore Ravens. That’s just a first look, though. There are a handful of good men out there whose addition would constitute an upgrade.
The Falcons, I say again, lucked out. A staleness had come over this coaching staff. That’s inevitable after four years together, and now the team gets to change on both offense and defense without having to fire anybody. Auburn and Jacksonville came calling at the right time, Jacksonville especially. Time now for Smitty and Thomas Dimitroff to make the most of this opportunity. Time to hire even better coordinators.
By Mark Bradley
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465 comments Add your comment
Jesse Jackson
January 11th, 2012
8:30 am
I see a day when all black chirrens can have free season tickets, free hotdogs, and free cherry koolaid. A free bus ride to the games, a ride home, and a all black coachin staff.
Former Falcon Fan since 66
January 11th, 2012
8:30 am
Got to say this is good for the Falcons. Mularkey had his moments, but ultimately didn’t, IMHO, make the best use of his available talents. Wish him luck in Jax. Rest assured, those of you who want change just for the sake of change, TD, MS, and AB are all a couple of steps ahead of all the bloggers. Dimitroff, who I think is one of the best in the business, has probably already contacted several candidates for both the OC and DC jobs. He doesn’t appear to be the type to wait for the Greyhound to hit him. The next couple of weeks should be good fodder for the blogs, but in the end, I am confident that the Falcons will make hires which will move us in the right direction. I’m still in mourning after the game Sunday, but am still a Falcon Fan. (Just ignore my rantings and ravings on Sunday afternoon!)
AlanFalcon
January 11th, 2012
8:33 am
Kappa101, you have got to be kidding and whomever suggested Hugh Jackson is just as bad with their thought process.
AlanFalcon
January 11th, 2012
8:34 am
Kirby Smart for DC, look at his body of work, we need new blood.
derk davis
January 11th, 2012
8:35 am
I feel we should put Ryan in a West Coast offense, when we had that office under Mora we had an awesome office, number 1 in rushing. the only difference is that we have a true Quarterback in Ryan instead of a running Vick. The west coast offense is a very explosive offense and will help the Falcons. I suggest we keep turner, include rodgers more, and maybe if possible reach for Lamichael James. Zone blocking is way better then the power pulling guard because linebackers can read power better then zone. I suggest any west coast OC like a Greg Knapp or a Marty Morningwhig if possible. On defense we should look at a DC with a complete defensive background, there is nothing wrong with linebackers, but we must find a way to fix our secondary. we need physical corners. we need someone who has a complete background with developing DEs. I have some faith in MS and TD.
Falcon Fan since 66
January 11th, 2012
8:35 am
Whoops, forgot to delete the “Former” part of Falcon Fan since 66. Remnant of my post-game tirade! Still a fan!
Kappa101
January 11th, 2012
8:38 am
Winston Moss (Green Bay Asst Head Coach)
Duluthdawg
January 11th, 2012
8:38 am
Yep, Jack Del Rio will be the man as DC. A buddy taking care of a buddy. But it better work,Smith! Cause your job may be riding on it.
jt9k
January 11th, 2012
8:38 am
Even if DelRio would be willing to work for Smitty, I wouldn’t want him. He got fired in Jax not only because the team was bad, but the word was that he was either burned out or had otherwise become disinterested. Essentially, he had quit on the team. Mel Tucker? not so sure about that one either, didn’t we put up 41 on his defense?
Smitty's Right Ear
January 11th, 2012
8:39 am
Martz is being announced today at the presser.
Kappa101
January 11th, 2012
8:41 am
AlanFalcon did you say Kirby Smart….Really? He has won at Alabama…this is the NFL dude…no time for the college experiment.
RISE UP
January 11th, 2012
8:42 am
cut the Mularkey
B
January 11th, 2012
8:42 am
Rick Neuheisel? Why? Look at his records. Look at how he likes to coach.
Foosball
January 11th, 2012
8:46 am
Really? Hire a minority just because they’re a minority? I thought we were trying to get past that sort of mentality. Why don’t we let TD do his job and hire the best man available for both of these positions regardless of ethnicity? He’s done pretty well so far. All the best to MM and BVG but now it’s time to use this opportunity improve this team.and I trust TD to do exactly that.
gtbb
January 11th, 2012
8:46 am
Martz? Please NO,NO!!! Not an upgrade at all with this.
Matt "CHOKE" Ryan
January 11th, 2012
8:47 am
So let me get this straight:
The Falcants say Mularky is the reason their qb SUCKS…………..
Yet other teams interviewed him and one team signed him as the head coach.
Yet these same people who say he sucks, is also WRONG about EVERYTHING the last 4 years.
Hmmmmmm
Could it possibly be that CHOKE made Mularky look bad?
What will be your excuse next year? That is if Blank doesn’t cut him
Bambino
January 11th, 2012
8:47 am
Given the lack of talent on the defensive and offensive sides of the ball, I think the Falcons should go cheap an hire Mike Bobo as OC and Willie Martinez as DC. Our position in the 2013 draft would quickly improve.
sam
January 11th, 2012
8:48 am
Just want to say that I’m a lot happier now than I was Sunday night. The Falcons needed a shake up and a new OC and DC are big steps in that direction.
Brian Friel
January 11th, 2012
8:48 am
Why not Brian Billick?
Mr. Blank
January 11th, 2012
8:49 am
Great move by the Falcons. Smith and TD… you could be next!
Mr. Blank
January 11th, 2012
8:50 am
TD has no clue.
AlpharettaGuy
January 11th, 2012
8:51 am
If you want to get far in the playoffs, it’s all about the QB–most important player on the field, by far. I hope the Falcons get a good DC & OC but they’re not going to ‘fire’ Matt Ryan anytime soon…it is a marriage. I like Ryan as a person but somehow he needs more fire in the belly, more ability to stand in the pocket & take the hits, more of whatever Tebow has inside of him. At the end of the first half of the Giants game when I saw Ryan slide in bounds with no one touching him, three yards away from getting a first down & going out of bounds, it really made me wonder about him. He needs to step up in pressure situations (playoffs) & I’m not sure you can coach that. Having said all of that, I really do hope he can really become ‘Matty Ice!’ Time will tell.
sickof
January 11th, 2012
8:51 am
this minority card stuff! If you can do the job,hire the man.But don’t force nothing on me.Cause then,when I have to fire you it just all plays out again. Learn how to do things or shut up!
BobDawg
January 11th, 2012
8:51 am
Mark Bradley , there is some news that the OC and DC were told to “if you have an opportunity out there you might jump on it” after the Saints loss. IS THAT TRUE??? Seems to make sense with the Van Gorder deal happening on Monday while Chizic was in New Orleans. I wonder if that hurt our planning for the playoff game is what I’m getting at????
mountain_jim
January 11th, 2012
8:52 am
I am glad to see both coordinators go.
Now let’s see if Smith/Dimitroff have the stones to really things, or is Smith still going to hamstring the defense and want a conservative, run-first, style OC.
And TD better get some decent replacements for the oline, or a coach that can fix it, or he and Smith are going to eventually go down with this ship.
Matt "CHOKE" Ryan
January 11th, 2012
8:55 am
Sorry guys but that short window has been SHUT before it really opened.
One thing I have learned from the last 4 seasons, is that CHOKE could throw 10 picks and it would still be Mularky, Turner, Julio, Roddy or the O-Line fault.
You guys need to face the truth – CHOKE is no Vick………….. PERIOD.
Meanwhile Joe Flacco is still in the playoffs.
Yates is still in the playoffs.
Tebow is still in the playoffs.
What do they have in common? Like Vick they all won their 1st playoff games the 1st time up
d.carter
January 11th, 2012
8:56 am
Continued New Excuses for why Matt Ryan cant win a playoff game:
4. ummmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm
3. its Joe johnsons fault
2. ummmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm
1. This stuff wasnt on all of the game film i watched in the off-season
Stepchild
January 11th, 2012
8:56 am
If Mike Mularkey was the problem Dimitroff & Smitty didn’t think so. Neither one of them took the opportunity to fire him!!! Neither did his role get diminished during his stay here. Same with BVG. Both Dimitroff & Smitty believed that they had the right coaches till the bitter end. MM & BVG left on their own terms….I do know that the time is now ticking on Smitty…the blame has to go somewhere. And its easier to change a head coach than to change a “elite” QB. Matt Ryan’s potential is gonna get Smitty Fired.
messin with sasquatch
January 11th, 2012
8:57 am
I saw the hurry up offense mostly in the game, which means QB (whoever) doesn’t have time to make the best play decisions before and during the play. And how do you give the QB (whoever) more time?
ricker
January 11th, 2012
8:58 am
Kappa101…man, GREAT suggestion–let’s make our hire choices based on race…that’ll sure fix things. Man, do you guys EVER think through anything before you speak???
Matt "CHOKE" Ryan
January 11th, 2012
8:59 am
rduck
January 11th, 2012
8:15 am
ever notice how thw anti-Ryan pro-Vick guys on these blogs seem to almost always use all CAPS
____________________________________________
How does that change your qb 0-3 in the playoffs and a SHUT OUT?
HA HA HA
RJ
January 11th, 2012
8:59 am
rather have Mike Nolan than Del Rio.
Kappa101
January 11th, 2012
9:00 am
Foosball so VG and MM were the best? I said consider/hire a minority. What’s wrong with a minority…it is 2012 right?
BamaDad
January 11th, 2012
9:01 am
Oh, man! This has been a great week for the Falcons. Show how smart you are now, TD. This is the best opportunity you’ll have this year, seeing that are draft choices are limited. And you pegged it right, MB. The Falcons did get lucky with these hirings. Maybe they each knew there positions were in peril (or at least they should have). MS & TD & AB all come out of this looking like good guys.
Matt "CHOKE" Ryan
January 11th, 2012
9:03 am
I think you guys actually like losing, as long as you have your guy.
You guys deserve CHOKE
Cohutta Dawgman
January 11th, 2012
9:03 am
Speaking of lucky hires how about Mike Bobo as the new OC.
Saints R.E.A.M.
January 11th, 2012
9:04 am
Everyone is cheering that Mularkey is leaving.
Why? At the end of the 1st half of the Giants game…when Matt Ryan was running and mysteriously just fell down like a sniper hit him in the leg (with no defender around him) was that on Mularkey????
I suspect the cloak will be pulled off of Matt Ryan and all will really see what has been obvious to many bloggers – - – that get ridiculed on here as Vick lovers..etc.
Matt has been hyped up for the sole purpose of trying to bury the demand for M.Vick’s…excitement. Vick may not have been a great QB but he put his heart into it….and like Tebow….fans connect with that effort.
Gbal
January 11th, 2012
9:04 am
If J’Ville would take MM….
What are chances ATL could take M. Bobo?
Crazy things are happening!
Sure CTG’s agent couldnt have asked for better timing on the falcons opening at DC. Guarantee you there have already been discussions.
Kappa101
January 11th, 2012
9:04 am
sickof…you should be sick of these same “good ole boy” coaches being hired and not doing jack! maybe you should shut up and LEARN something diffferent…obviously this hasnt gotten us a SB.
John Galt
January 11th, 2012
9:05 am
I trust TD- we will be better off, I am sure.
Kicks_Coach
January 11th, 2012
9:05 am
Pat Yasinskas from over at ESPN is reporting that the Falcons may simply promote QB coach Bob Bratkowski to the OC job since he has been an OC before and was hired as a back up last offseason when MM was being interviewed for HC positions.
Matt "CHOKE" Ryan
January 11th, 2012
9:06 am
I’ll give this to CHOKE though. He is a good salesman.
I mean he can fool you biased fans by just going to the line, call out a lot of numbers, move around at the line of scrimmage like their is a fire at the mall, change up the plays, and impersonate Peyton Manning.
In the end however, he never fooled the defense…………………….
HA HA HA
Richard
January 11th, 2012
9:06 am
Amen, brother.
Gbal
January 11th, 2012
9:06 am
REAM – Vick is a talent, but honestly, he did not put his heart into it while a Falcon. He admitted as much himself. His heart came into it after 2 years in the slammer.
VEEDUB
January 11th, 2012
9:07 am
@Josh.. Turner is making hisself obselete running like TJ Duckett.. We shud definitely hire someone who has not been here before, no repeats.. But we need to pull the trigger fast. They shud be interviewing already!!!
@Mark Bradley (MBeezie), anybody on the “radar” for interviews yet?????
Matt "CHOKE" Ryan
January 11th, 2012
9:08 am
Trust Dimitroff?
I know Cleveland will trust him in stealing picks
Falcons4Eva
January 11th, 2012
9:10 am
All Falcons Fans –
Just ignore ANYTHING “CHOKE” has to say. Just don’t read it. Skip by it and keep it moving. Sooner or later, he and his statements will be come irrelevant to you. YOU are the ones that make him relevant to Falcons discussion. The more you respond to his non-sense, the more ignorant and stupid he becomes.
Matt "CHOKE" Ryan
January 11th, 2012
9:10 am
Gbal
January 11th, 2012
9:06 am
REAM – Vick is a talent, but honestly, he did not put his heart into it while a Falcon. He admitted as much himself.
___________________________________________________
0-3 in the playoffs. Shut out in the playoffs. Yeah that’s putting your heart into it
Big Al
January 11th, 2012
9:10 am
Win One Soon is waiting in the wings. No question about it. The Falcons will be 16-0 next fall. The juggernaut of the NFL. On paper that is. Unfortunately for the Falcons, they have to play the games.
d.carter
January 11th, 2012
9:10 am
More excuses for Matt Ryan:
5. Fire Woody
4. He really doesnt like Samuel Jackson
3. Bring back Brian Finneran
2. He wants the NFL to change to the BCS Bowl system
1. Change the team colors to match the Boston College colors