The Falcons under Quinn and Dimitroff had a record of 14-23 since the start of the '18 seasonGETTY IMAGES
The Falcons late last night "officially announced" coach Dan Quinn's firing, along with GM Thomas Dimitroff's dismissal, after an 0-5 start, according to Jeff Schultz of THE ATHLETIC. Falcons Owner Arthur Blank "sent an email to season ticket holders announcing the firings" at about 9:30pm ET, "before the news officially was announced." Dimitroff's status "had been less certain than Quinn's, but there's little doubt Dimitroff had been kept out of the loop in recent weeks." In the final minutes of yesterday's Panthers-Falcons game, Blank "could be seen on the field speaking with confidant" and team President & CEO Rich McKay while Dimitroff was "standing at least 10 yards away." This team "has become a major marketing problem for Blank." He "might have made a coaching change after a Monday night loss in Green Bay dropped the Falcons to 0-4, if not for the logistics of returning home from a road game in a short game week." Blank "has struggled with this decision because he likes Quinn on a personal level, and it wasn't that long ago when the coach led the Falcons to the Super Bowl in only his second season," in '16. But Blank's conscience "should be clear now" (THEATHLETIC.com, 10/11).
TIME FOR CHANGE: The AP's Paul Newberry notes the 54-year-old Dimitroff was "one of the longest-tenured general managers in the NFL, hired by Atlanta in 2008 with the franchise in turmoil after Michael Vick's dogfighting conviction and Bobby Petrino's stunning departure after just 13 games as coach." One of Dimitroff's first decisions "was perhaps his biggest" -- drafting QB Matt Ryan with the No. 3 overall pick in the '08 draft. Dimitroff also "was responsible for a blockbuster trade" in '11 that landed WR Julio Jones. Dimitroff "kept his job" when former coach Mike Smith was fired at the end of the '14 season after two straight losing campaigns. Mired in another losing run, Blank "restored McKay -- who had mainly been involved in planning for a new retractable-roof stadium that opened in 2017 -- to a more prominent role in football operations" (AP, 10/12). SI.com's Albert Breer writes that Dimitroff "went down with Quinn is mildly surprising in its timing, even if Dimitroff wasn't going survive a second coach firing on his watch." But it "does allow for Blank to get going on working toward remaking his football operation, which has a ton of questions going forward" (SI.com, 10/12).
COULD NEVER FORGET SUPER BOWL: NFL Network's Tom Pelissero said, "A couple of brutal losses in the early stages of this season: letting the lead go against the Cowboys, blowing another lead against the Chicago Bears. Every time that that happened, it picked at the scab of that Super Bowl loss four years ago. Even though they had injuries, even though they had an offseason where a pandemic wiped out the spring and wiped out the preseason, an 0-5 start just too much for Quinn and Dimitroff" (“Good Morning Football,” NFL Network, 10/12).
ONE OF THE BEST: PFT's Mike Florio, on the Falcons moving on from Dimitroff: "That's the one that surprises me, that Dimitroff is gone too. The fact that the Texans got rid of the coach/GM Bill O'Brien last week ... made Arthur Blank realize, why wait? We're going to be looking for both. Let's start the search now" (“PFT,” NBCSN, 10/12). NFL Network's Peter Schrager said, "Dimitroff in the draft is one of those horse traders who is constantly on the phones looking to make moves and wanting to move up and down." He added, "A truly respected general manager and evaluator, and I would be very surprised if Thomas doesn’t land on his feet" (“Good Morning Football,” NFL Network, 10/12).
HELD ON FOR TOO LONG? In Atlanta, Michael Cunningham writes Quinn "can encourage the Falcons, but he can't coach them to a win." He "led them to a Super Bowl once and blew it." It has been "diminishing returns since then." Blank "finally decided it won't get better." The Falcons are 0-5 for the first time since '97, and "no one who's been paying attention believed Quinn could engineer a turnaround." Blank brought Quinn back and "sold his customers on the idea that a 6-2 finish to last season would carry over to this season." In his statement announcing the firings, Blank "acknowledged the obvious by saying that hasn't happened." Blank "welcomed fans into the stadium Sunday for the first time in three games there this season." They got to "witness the results of his decision to retain Quinn." Blank "couldn't keep Quinn and keep the faith of his constituents." He "already tried that once" (ATLANTA JOURNAL-CONSTITUTION, 10/12).
