As the Atlanta Falcons flail through their second four-game losing streak in as many seasons under Raheem Morris, the second-year head coach maintains that there will be no staff changes coming, at least not this week.
“No, we’ve got a really good group here,” said Morris, whose team fell 31-25 in overtime to the Indianapolis Colts in Berlin on Sunday. “We have a really good group of guys. We’ve been in two tough games in back-to-back weeks versus two really good football teams.”
The Falcons fired wide receivers coach Ike Hilliard back on Sept. 22, but Morris’ answer Monday in a virtual press conference implies that offensive coordinator Zac Robinson and defensive coordinator Jeff Ulbrich are safe, among others.
Atlanta’s recent issues go further than allowing Indianapolis’ Jonathan Taylor to rush for 244 yards, which were 19th-most in a game in NFL history. Falcons quarterback Michael Penix Jr. ranks 31st among qualified passers with a 58.8% completion percentage and Atlanta’s offense has converted just 3 of 29 (10.3%) third-down attempts across its last three games. Atlanta was 0-for-8 on Sunday.
As Morris’ seat continues to warm, the problems are piling up for the 3-6 Falcons.
“First of all, we’ve got to get shorter third downs,” Morris told reporters Monday. “We had a couple more long third downs yesterday. The other thing about it is we’ve got to execute better. We’ve got to execute what (Penix) is saying, what he’s telling us to do. … Mike’s got to play better. He wants to play better. He’s always going to be very hard on himself. But he’s a young man. He’s a first-year quarterback and we’ve got to play better for him and around him.”
With each passing loss, it’s becoming more likely that the Falcons will see their postseason drought extended to eight seasons. Atlanta is tied with the Carolina Panthers for the second-longest active streak. Only the New York Jets have waited longer for a return to the playoffs (they last made it in 2010).
If there is any glimmer of hope for the Falcons, it’s that their next three opponents (Carolina, the Jets and the New Orleans Saints) have a combined record of 9-20 and that Morris has experience with a pair of 3-6 teams that rallied to make the postseason.
Morris was the defensive backs coach for the 2012 Washington Redskins, who won their final seven games to clinch a playoff berth, before serving as the defensive coordinator for the 2023 Los Angeles Rams, who went 7-1 down the stretch to sneak in.
Even so, Morris dismissed the notion that he would use lessons from those teams with this year’s Falcons.
“I don’t like to, because every team has its own individual taste,” Morris said. “What you’d like to do is get better every single day. I don’t think when I was with the Rams or at Washington we ever said, ‘Hey, we’re going to make this run.’ It just kind of happened by getting better and better every day. It’s one step at a time and one day at a time. It’s got to start (at practice) on Wednesday.”
The 2020 Washington Football Team and the 2022 Jacksonville Jaguars are the only teams in league history to make the postseason after starting 3-7.
