Tag: Falcons

Falcons name Tommy Rees as OC, retain 3 other coaches

Posted on | by Field Level Media

The Atlanta Falcons made the hiring of offensive coordinator Tommy Rees official on Thursday and also announced the retention of three members of the coaching staff.

Senior defensive assistant Dave Huxtable, assistant offensive line coach Nick Jones and running backs coach Michael Pitre will all return in 2026 as members of new head coach Kevin Stefanski’s staff.

Rees, 33, spent the 2025 season as the Cleveland Browns’ offensive coordinator under Stefanski after serving as tight ends coach and passing game specialist in 2024. Stefanski yielded play-calling duties to Rees in November after Cleveland’s 2-6 start.

The Browns ranked 31st in points per game (16.4), 30th in total yards (262.1), 27th in rushing yards (97.0) and 31st in passing yards (140.3) in 2025.

Rees served as offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach at Notre Dame from 2020-22 and held the same roles at Alabama in 2023.

Atlanta hired veteran offensive line coach Bill Callahan on Tuesday, announced defensive coordinator Jeff Ulbrich was being retained on Monday and hired Stefanski last Saturday to replace fired head coach Raheem Morris.

Rees replaces Zac Robinson, who was hired as the offensive coordinator of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Thursday.

Rees played four seasons at quarterback for Notre Dame (2010-13) and completed 59.8% of his passes for 7,670 yards, 61 touchdowns and 37 interceptions in 47 games.

Atlanta also hired Jacqueline Roberts as manager of coaching operations. She spent the past two seasons with the Browns.

–Field Level Media

Reports: Falcons hiring Tommy Rees as OC, rejoining new head coach

Posted on | by Field Level Media

The Atlanta Falcons are hiring Tommy Rees as offensive coordinator, rejoining new head coach Kevin Stefanski after their time together on the Cleveland Browns’ staff, according to multiple reports on Wednesday.

Rees, 33, spent this season as the Browns’ offensive coordinator after serving as tight ends coach and passing game specialist in 2024. Stefanski yielded play-calling duties to Rees in November after Cleveland’s 2-6 start.

The Browns (5-12) ranked 31st in points per game (16.4), 30th in total yards (262.1), 27th in rushing yards (97.0) and 31st in passing yards (140.3) in 2025.

Rees served as offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach at Notre Dame from 2020-22 and held the same roles at Alabama in 2023.

Atlanta hired veteran offensive line coach Bill Callahan on Tuesday, announced defensive coordinator Jeff Ulbrich was being retained on Monday and hired Stefanski last Saturday to replace fired head coach Raheem Morris. Rees would be replacing Zac Robinson.

Matt Ryan, a legendary quarterback for the franchise, was brought back as the new president of football on Jan. 10.

Rees played four seasons at quarterback for Notre Dame (2010-13) and completed 59.8% of his passes for 7,670 yards, 61 touchdowns and 37 interceptions in 47 games.

–Field Level Media

Bucs QB Baker Mayfield calls out former coach Kevin Stefanski

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Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Baker Mayfield didn’t waste much time taking aim at Kevin Stefanski, his former coach in Cleveland and now current head coach of the NFC South-rival Atlanta Falcons.

Mayfield took a jab at Stefanski on social media Tuesday while addressing a post from an Atlanta Journal-Constitution reporter.

The newspaper writer wrote Stefanski was saddled with a “dumpster fire at quarterback in Cleveland — Baker Mayfield and Deshaun Watson failed, which started a chain reaction to 11 other starters.”

Mayfield, who played under Stefanski with the Browns from 2020-21, took issue with that comment before putting Stefanski on blast.

“Failed is quite the reach pal,” Mayfield wrote. “Still waiting on a text/call from him after I got shipped off like a piece of garbage. Can’t wait to see you twice a year, Coach.”

Mayfield, 30, guided the Browns to the playoffs in 2020 — their first postseason berth since 2002 — before requesting a trade out of Cleveland after the team acquired Watson during the 2022 offseason. The Browns shipped Mayfield to the Carolina Panthers for a fifth-round pick, and the top overall pick of the 2018 NFL Draft requested his release and signed with the Los Angeles Rams later in 2022.

Mayfield has found success in Tampa Bay, earning back-to-back Pro Bowl selections in 2023 and 2024 while helping the Buccaneers capture consecutive division titles. The team limped to an 8-9 record this season and missed the playoffs.

The Falcons hired Stefanski on Saturday to replace the fired Raheem Morris as their new head coach. They finished 8-9 in the 2025 season.

–Field Level Media

Falcons tab Bill Callahan as offensive line coach

Posted on | by Field Level Media

Bill Callahan will rejoin Kevin Stefanski and work as the offensive line coach for the Atlanta Falcons, the team announced Tuesday.

The move was expected after Stefanski agreed to become Atlanta’s head coach on Saturday.

Callahan, 69, served as Stefanski’s offensive line coach for the Cleveland Browns from 2020-23 before leaving to work for his son, Brian Callahan, with the Tennessee Titans. Bill Callahan departed the Titans on Oct. 14, one day after Brian was fired as the team’s head coach midway through this season.

Bill Callahan served as a head coach with the then-Oakland Raiders (2002-03) and as interim head coach of the Washington franchise (2019). He also worked as the offensive coordinator for the Raiders (1998-2001) and Dallas Cowboys (2012-14) and as an offensive line coach with several teams in a coaching career that stretches back to the late 1970s.

Bill Callahan also was head coach at Nebraska from 2004-07.

–Field Level Media

Falcons retaining defensive coordinator Jeff Ulbrich

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New Atlanta Falcons head coach Kevin Stefanski will retain defensive coordinator Jeff Ulbrich, the team announced Monday.

Ulbrich agreed to a new three-year deal, according to an NFL Network report.

Ulbrich arrived in Atlanta ahead of the 2025 season after serving as the New York Jets defensive coordinator (2021-24) and interim head coach after Robert Saleh’s firing in October 2024.

He inherited a unit that was 23rd in total defense (345.2 yards per game) and scoring defense (24.9) in 2024. After a draft where the team almost exclusively drafted defensive players, his defense set a franchise record with 57 sacks (second to the Denver Broncos in the NFL), ranking 15th in total defense (326.8) and 19th in scoring defense (23.6).

This is Ulbrich’s second stint in Atlanta. He was previously the Falcons’ linebackers coach from 2015-19, also taking on assistant head coach and then interim DC duties in 2020 before leaving for New York.

Ulbrich, 48, was a third-round pick in the 2000 NFL Draft out of Hawaii and played 10 seasons as a linebacker for the San Francisco 49ers. He appeared in 120 games (75 starts) and recorded 501 tackles, 5.5 sacks and two interceptions.

–Field Level Media

Falcons interview Antonio Pierce for coaching vacancy

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Former Las Vegas Raiders coach Antonio Pierce on Friday became the ninth candidate to interview for the Atlanta Falcons’ head coaching vacancy.

Currently an NFL studio analyst for CBS, Pierce joined the Raiders’ staff in 2022 as linebackers coach, then served as interim head coach in 2023 before becoming head coach in 2024. He went 9-17 at the helm and was fired after a 4-13 campaign in 2024.

Pierce, 47, was on the Arizona State coaching staff from 2018-21 in various roles following a four-year stint (2014-17) as head coach of Long Beach (Calif.) Poly High School.

During his nine-year NFL career as a linebacker with Washington (2001-04) and the New York Giants (2005-09), Pierce won Super Bowl XLII with the Giants.

Along with Pierce, the Falcons have also interviewed Green Bay Packers defensive coordinator Jeff Hafley, Los Angeles Chargers defensive coordinator Jesse Minter, former Ravens head coach John Harbaugh (reportedly hired to coach the New York Giants), former Cleveland Browns head coach Kevin Stefanski, former Miami Dolphins head coach Mike McDaniel and Dolphins defensive coordinator Anthony Weaver, as well as Seattle Seahawks offensive coordinator Klint Kubiak and defensive coordinator Aden Durde.

–Field Level Media

Falcons interview Chargers DC Jesse Minter for coaching vacancy

Posted on | by Field Level Media

The Atlanta Falcons continued a busy Thursday in the search for their next head coach with the announcement that they have completed an interview with Los Angeles Chargers defensive coordinator Jesse Minter for the position.

It’s the second completed interview the Falcons announced on Thursday, along with Packers DC Jeff Hafley, and their eighth overall interviewed candidate for the vacancy.

Minter just concluded his second season with Los Angeles. His defense finished the 2025 regular season fifth in total defense (285.2 yards allowed per game) and ninth in scoring defense (20.0 points).

The 42-year-old has a healthy mix of NFL and collegiate coaching experience. He previously served as a defensive assistant and defensive backs coach for the Baltimore Ravens (2016-20), and as a defensive coordinator at Vanderbilt (2021) and Michigan (2022-23).

Minter is also interviewing with the Miami Dolphins on Thursday and has previously met with the Arizona Cardinals, Las Vegas Raiders, Tennessee Titans and Ravens.

In addition to Minter and Hafley, Atlanta has interviewed former Ravens head coach John Harbaugh (reportedly the next Giants coach), former Cleveland Browns head coach Kevin Stefanski, former Dolphins head coach Mike McDaniel and Dolphins defensive coordinator Anthony Weaver, as well as Seattle Seahawks offensive coordinator Klint Kubiak and defensive coordinator Aden Durde.

–Field Level Media

Packers DC Jeff Hafley interviews for Falcons’ HC position

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Jeff Hafley interviewed for the vacant head coaching position with the Atlanta Falcons, the team announced Thursday.

Hafley, 46, has spent the past two seasons as the defensive coordinator with the Green Bay Packers. He also served as the co-defensive coordinator/secondary coach at Ohio State in 2019 before spending 2020-23 as the head coach at Boston College.

Hafley was the seventh person to formally interview for the Falcons’ position, joining former Baltimore Ravens head coach John Harbaugh, ex-Miami Dolphins head coach Mike McDaniel and former Cleveland Browns head coach Kevin Stefanski, among others.

Multiple media outlets, however, reported Thursday that Harbaugh has agreed to terms to become the head coach of the New York Giants.

Atlanta also has completed head coach interviews with Dolphins defensive coordinator Anthony Weaver and both Seattle Seahawks offensive coordinator Klint Kubiak and defensive coordinator Aden Durde.

The Falcons (8-9) finished in a three-way tie atop the NFC South this season. Owner Arthur Blank elected to fire head coach Raheem Morris after two seasons and GM Terry Fontenot after five seasons despite the team winning its final four games in 2025 after it had been eliminated from the postseason.

Former Falcons MVP quarterback Matt Ryan was hired as the team’s new president of football on Saturday.

–Field Level Media

Falcons complete interview of John Harbaugh for head coaching vacancy

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The Atlanta Falcons completed an interview with former Ravens coach John Harbaugh for its vacant head coach position on Monday, his first formal interview since his firing Jan. 6 after 18 seasons in Baltimore.

There’s been reported widespread interest in Harbaugh, who led the Ravens to 12 postseason appearances and a Super Bowl XLVII victory at the end of the 2012 season.

Harbaugh, 63, ranks 12th for most wins by a head coach in NFL history with 193 including the postseason.

Harbaugh told Fox Sports in an interview over the weekend that he would take some time to narrow his options before beginning interviews.

He set the likely number of teams he will interview at three or four, with the New York Giants and Tennessee Titans being reported as other jobs which stand out to him.

Harbaugh’s agent told ESPN that he had received calls from seven teams — including one in Miami which had not yet fired its head coach — about Harbaugh’s availability within 45 minutes of news of his firing breaking.

Sports Illustrated reported Monday Harbaugh had preliminary calls with the Cleveland Browns, Arizona Cardinals, Miami Dolphins, Las Vegas Raiders, Giants and Titans to listen to teams’ pitches and decide who to interview with.

Atlanta (8-9) finished in a three-way tie atop the NFC South this season. Falcons owner Arthur Blank elected to fire head coach Raheem Morris after two seasons and GM Terry Fontenot after five seasons despite the team winning its final four games this season after it had been eliminated from the postseason.

Former Falcons MVP quarterback Matt Ryan was hired as the team’s new president of football operations on Saturday.

Atlanta has also completed head coach interviews with Dolphins defensive coordinator Anthony Weaver, Seattle Seahawks offensive coordinator Klint Kubiak and defensive coordinator Aden Durde, and former Browns head coach Kevin Stefanski.

–Field Level Media

Falcons interview Kevin Stefanski for coaching vacancy

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The Atlanta Falcons interviewed two-time NFL Coach of the Year Kevin Stefanski for their head-coaching vacancy on Sunday.

Stefanski is the fourth candidate to be interviewed as the club searches for a replacement for the fired Raheem Morris.

Stefanski was dismissed by the Cleveland Browns following the regular season, ending a six-year stint (2020-25) with the team. The Browns were just 8-26 over the past two seasons and Stefanski went 45-56 overall.

The Browns made the playoffs twice under Stefanski, and the team’s postseason win over the Pittsburgh Steelers on Jan. 10, 2021, is the only one the franchise has achieved since it was restored in 1999.

However, Stefanski wasn’t on the sidelines on the day of the playoff win due to a bout with COVID-19.

Stefanski, 43, earned the top coach honors in 2020 and 2023 when the Browns won 11 games each season. Those were his lone winning seasons with Cleveland.

Atlanta is the fourth team to interview Stefanski. The Baltimore Ravens interviewed him on Friday and Stefanski also interviewed with the New York Giants and Las Vegas Raiders.

The Falcons previously interviewed Miami Dolphins defensive coordinator Anthony Weaver, Seattle Seahawks offensive coordinator Klint Kubiak and Seahawks defensive coordinator Aden Durde.

–Field Level Media