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Atlanta Falcons Cut Jimmy Williams

Michael David SmithPosted Jun 17th 2008 4:37PM by Michael David Smith (author feed)
Filed under: Falcons, Atlanta

The Atlanta Falcons announced today that they have released cornerback Jimmy Williams, their 2006 second-round draft pick.

The release doesn't come as a surprise, considering that Williams never played up to expectations, and that his commitment to the game was questioned when he showed up to workouts weighing more than 230 pounds, or about 20 over his listed weight.

If the release tells us anything, it's that the new regime in Atlanta, headed up by coach Mike Smith and general manager Tom Dimitroff, doesn't think very highly of the players brought in by the old regime, headed up by general manager Rich McKay and coaches Bobby Petrino and Jim Mora.

Note: Two years ago, Falcons owner Arthur Blank said he was excited about building a nucleus of players from Virginia Tech. Now all five of the Hokies who were on the Falcons' roster at the time are gone.

Former Coach Thinks Michael Vick Was 'On the Verge of Turning NFL Upside Down'

Ryan WilsonPosted Jun 2nd 2008 5:33PM by Ryan Wilson (author feed)
Filed under: Falcons, NFL Fans, NFL Police Blotter

Hue Jackson is probably best known as the target of Chad Johnson's affections shortly after Johnson had been knocked silly during a 2006 game against the Browns. Jackson, then the wide receivers coach, left the Bengals after the season to take the Falcons offensive coordinator job under visionary Bobby Petrino. That gig didn't last a year, and now Jackson is the Ravens quarterback coach.

Jackson, speaking this week on Sirius Radio's The Opening Drive, says he still corresponds with the currently incarcerated Michael Vick. Via MMQB:
[Jackson] has sent Vick tips and reminders about what to do in third-down situations and in the red zone, and he says he thinks Vick is going over them in jail. Jackson thinks Vick will play again, and play very well, when he gets out just more than a year from now.

"In my opinion,'' Jackson said on The Opening Drive program, "Michael Vick was the verge of turning this league upside down.''
That's a lot to digest. First, Leavenworth's football team will feature the most complex offense in the federal prison system. Hopefully Vick fares better in it than he did in the West Coast Offense under Jim Mora.
Continue Reading Former Coach Thinks Michael Vick Was 'On the Verge of Turning NFL Upside Down'

Should the Falcons Start Over, or Do They Just Need to Tweak the Roster?

Ryan WilsonPosted Feb 12th 2008 5:34PM by Ryan Wilson (author feed)
Filed under: Falcons, NFL Fans


This has become an annual question in Atlanta: should the front office blow up the roster and start over, or are there pieces in place to get the Falcons back to playing something other than what we've been subjected to the last two seasons?

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution's Steve Wyche thinks that with $23 million in salary-cap space, the front office should "semi-gut" the roster.
[New general manager Thomas] Dimitroff and [head coach Mike] Smith have to be sure they find the right replacements, though because if they're going to make wholesale changes, they better not miss on the players they bring in. Not to say immediate results would be demanded by Blank but if things stagnate or get even worse over the next few years...
Yeah, I'd say it's probably pretty important to just not sign the biggest name in free agency, but to actually find some players that help improve the team. The former strategy didn't work out all that well when Redskins owner Dan Snyder tried it with Deion Sanders and Bruce Smith back in the late 1990s.

Wyche also writes that losing assistant general manager Billy Devaney weakens the personnel department, which is kind of a big deal for a Falcons team that lacks depth up and down the roster.

Of course, Atlanta wouldn't be in this situation if owner Arthur Blank wasn't in such a hurry to fire Jim Mora, or before him, Dan Reeves. I'll admit to thinking that Mora let the inmates run the asylum during his stint with the Falcons, but in retrospect, he might as well have been Tom Landry relative to all that's happened in the past 12 months.

Jim Mora Will Succeed Mike Holmgren as Seattle Seahawks Head Coach

Michael David SmithPosted Feb 5th 2008 8:57PM by Michael David Smith (author feed)
Filed under: Seahawks, NFL Coaching, Seattle

The Seattle Seahawks have chosen assistant head coach Jim Mora as the successor to Mike Holmgren, Jay Glazer of Fox Sports is reporting.

The move, which has been rumored for weeks, makes clear that Mora will become a head coach again a year from now. Holmgren has already announced that he will retire after the 2008 season.

The move could cause some controversy, as Glazer writes, "It's unclear how such a move could be made with the Rooney Rule in effect, which requires each team to interview at least one minority for any head coaching vacancy." But that last word is just the point: The NFL doesn't consider it to be a vacancy if a succession plan is already in place, and that means the Seahawks can hire Mora to replace Holmgren without conducting any interviews.

The same would be true of Jim Caldwell replacing Tony Dungy in Indianapolis, even if Caldwell weren't African-American.

Mora was a head coach once before, spending three seasons with the Falcons and going 27-23, a barely above .500 record that got him fired a year ago but that the Falcons would kill for now.

Next Offseason Could Have as Many as 12 NFL Coaching Vacancies

Ryan WilsonPosted Jan 26th 2008 11:42AM by Ryan Wilson (author feed)
Filed under: NFL Fans, NFL Coaching

When it comes to coaching vacancies, this off-season has been a buyer's market. Assistants Josh McDaniels and Jason Garrett turned down opportunities for head-coaching gigs, and Kirk Ferentz opted to stay at Iowa instead of pursuing NFL jobs.

But as FOX Sports' Jay Glazer writes, next year will be a completely different story.

While there were only four opening this off-season, a year from now, there could more than a dozen. Glazer lists the Seahawks, Eagles, Bengals, Vikings, Panthers, Cowboys, Chiefs. Colts, Lions, Rams and 49ers as teams who could be looking for new head coaches for the 2009 season.

The Seahawks, Colts and Cowboys are in the process of lining up successors -- word on the street has Jim Mora, Jim Caldwell and Jason Garrett all set to replace incumbents, if not next year, eventually -- but the other nine teams will be looking outside their organizations for the next head coach.

Glazer points out that Browns' offensive coordinator Rob Chudzinski could be next year's Garrett, and there's no doubt McDaniels will still top many owners' lists next spring.

Ravens defensive coordinator Rex Ryan, who is as deserving of a head-coaching opportunity as any assistant in the league, could finally get his shot. And while Gregg Williams probably isn't all that excited about losing out on the 'Skins job, he'll certainly get some interviews too. Other names that we'll certainly be hearing from: Tennessee's Jim Schwartz, Indy's Ron Meeks, and San Francisco's Mike Singletary.

Who's the Favorite in the Washington Redskins' Head Coaching Search?

Sportz AssassinPosted Jan 19th 2008 4:17AM by Sportz Assassin (author feed)
Filed under: Redskins, NFC East, NFL Coaching, Washington, DC

It is 2008 and the D.C. area loves a good race. Especially when it's for the top position in the city. The Presidency Head Coach of the Washington Redskins. Just as political pundits are checking out the primaries and caucuses for favorites, let's check in on the Skins and see who's the lead dog:

Gregg Williams (Redskins assistant coach -- defense). Williams is at the head of the line so far. Since he's gotten to D.C., it has been assumed that he'd be the guy to replace Joe Gibbs. Williams has been a head coach before and has the support of the current players (guys not named LaVar Arrington seem to play hard for him). He's had four interviews so far, which is promising, and is a Joe Gibbs kind of guy. Remember, Gibbs still is tugging on Daniel Snyder's ear and one of the themes of the Redskins has been continuity. Hiring Williams would be a step in that direction.

Ron Meeks (Colts defensive coordinator). Meeks is an interesting choice, especially since he is a defensive guy like Williams is. Meeks was the Redskins defensive backs coach in 2000 before leaving for the Rams and has made three Super Bowl appearances as coach (1998 Falcons, 2001 Rams, 2006 Colts). He's a buzz-worthy candidate due to his turnaround of the Indy defense and his ability to acclimate new players into his system.

Continue Reading Who's the Favorite in the Washington Redskins' Head Coaching Search?

Jim Mora Withdraws Name From Redskins Job; Is He Mike Holmgren's Successor?

Michael David SmithPosted Jan 18th 2008 4:17PM by Michael David Smith (author feed)
Filed under: Redskins, Seahawks, Seattle, Washington, DC

Adam Schefter of NFL Network is reporting (via PFT) that Seattle Seahawks defensive backs coach Jim Mora has withdrawn his name from consideration for the head coaching job with the Washington Redskins.

The obvious next question: Does that mean he's next in line to become the head coach of the Seahawks when Mike Holmgren retires? Holmgren is reportedly considering retirement, and even if he doesn't retire now, he's 13 years older than Mora, and Mora might think his best career option is to position himself as Holmgren's successor.

Mora attended the University of Washington, his first coaching job was there, and he has said he would like to spend the rest of his career in the state. In fact, his statement (which he said was a joke) that he wanted to coach his alma mater is part of the reason he was fired a year ago as head coach of the Falcons. (And replaced by a guy who would never dream of leaving the Falcons for a college job.)

That scenario would be similar to the situation in Indianapolis, where everyone agrees that Jim Caldwell will replace Tony Dungy, and the only question is whether that will happen next week or next year.

For the Redskins, the leading candidates now that Mora is out of the picture appear to be either the team's assistant head coach-defense Gregg Williams, or Tennessee Titans defensive coordinator Jim Schwartz.

Jim Mora to Redskins Could Make Sense

Michael David SmithPosted Jan 15th 2008 9:35AM by Michael David Smith (author feed)
Filed under: Falcons, Redskins, Seahawks, NFL Coaching, Atlanta, Seattle, Washington, DC

The latest development in the Redskins coaching search is that they could have their eyes on Jim Mora Jr., the Seattle Seahawks assistant head coach who previously was the head coach of the Atlanta Falcons. At first blush, it seems like a good fit.

All things considered, Mora did a pretty good job in Atlanta. When he arrived the Falcons were coming off a 5-11 season, and he got them to the NFC Championship in his first year. Mora is the kind of coach who can get along with a hands-on boss like Redskins owner Dan Snyder.

One complicating factor is that Mora is said to be a favorite to get the top job in Seattle if head coach Mike Holmgren retires. Other Redskins candidates include assistant head coach Gregg Williams, Indianapolis Colts assistants Jim Caldwell and Ron Meeks, and Titans defensive coordinator Jim Schwartz.

My first choice would be Schwartz because I'm interested in seeing how a Moneyball-style approach would work in the NFL, and Schwartz, more than any other NFL assistant, understands the use of statistical analysis. But if Snyder decides that he's the last person who should be going the Moneyball route, Mora might be the next-best option.

If Mike Holmgren Retires, Jim Mora Could Be the Seahawks' Next Coach

Ryan WilsonPosted Jan 13th 2008 1:24PM by Ryan Wilson (author feed)
Filed under: Seahawks, NFC West, NFL Fans, NFL Rumors, NFL Coaching

Earlier, FanHouse's Michael David Smith mentioned that Seahawks head coach Mike Holmgren will take time before deciding if he has coached his last NFL game. Holmgren has been in Seattle for nine seasons, and spent seven season before that in Green Bay, including a 1996 Super Bowl victory.

This isn't shocking news -- Holmgren has hinted at retirement for some time now -- but there's still the issue of who would replace him. On The NFL Today, Charley Casserly pointed out that if Holmgren does call it quits, assistant coach Jim Mora Jr. could be his successor.

The Falcons fired Mora last year after he compiled a 26-22 record in three seasons, including a trip to the NFC Championship game. (I'm guessing Arthur Blank would "settle" for that now.) Mora also missed out on the Dolphins head-coaching job that eventually went to Cam Cameron, which turned out to be a blessing.

Casserly added that the Seahawks general manager, Tim Ruskell, worked with Mora in Atlanta. Their relationship there could play a part in Mora replacing Holmgren. That, and Mora is a pretty good coach well versed in the West Coast Offense.

Former Head Coach Jim Mora Feels Sorry for the Falcons

Ryan WilsonPosted Dec 28th 2007 2:58PM by Ryan Wilson (author feed)
Filed under: Falcons, Seahawks, NFL Fans, NFL Coaching


If he were a lesser man, former Falcons head coach Jim Mora might look upon Atlanta's plight as schadenfreude-tastic. After owner Arthur Blank fired him last off-season, Mora landed with the Seahawks, but he's not one to revel in the misfortune of his former employer. At least not publicly, anyway:
The quarterback is in the clink, the Atlanta Falcons are in the cellar and the coach they hired to replace Jim Mora hightailed it out of town earlier this month. ... But being fired didn't prevent Mora from feeling some fallout from the disaster that has been Atlanta's season. ...

"I feel for those people there," Mora said. "I made a lot of great friends in that organization and have a lot of great relationships with people there, both players and people in the front office. I feel for what they're going through. It's not easy.
The Falcons never lost more than seven games under Mora, and made it to the NFC Championship game in 2004. Now they are a 3-12 team one loss away from their worst season in 11 years.

Even if Mora had stayed Vick's predicament would likely be unchanged, but you have to think Mora would've done a better job with the day-to-day responsibilities that go with coaching a group of young millionaire professional athletes. After watching Bobby Petrino bumble his way through at Atlanta, anybody would've been an improvement.

A year ago, many people thought Mora underachieved just enough to lose his job. But in retrospect, he looked like Dan Reeves compared to Petrino. Which reminds me: why did Blank fire Reeves again?
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