FLOWERY BRANCH, Ga. — The Atlanta Falcons have one of the largest coaching staffs in the NFL under new head coach Raheem Morris. The 26 coaches, by CBS Sports Research’s count, is good for third largest in the entire league.
Look just at the offensive side of the ball. There’s first-year offensive coordinator Zac Robinson with quarterbacks coach T.J. Yates behind him. D.J. Williams is the assistant QBs coach, then there’s veteran coach Ken Zampese as a senior offensive assistant. Tim Berbenich is the pass game specialist, and offensive line coach Dwayne Ledford is the run game coordinator.
This is without mentioning two offensive assistants.
When I sat down with Morris during the Falcons’ one-day minicamp in June, I asked him why he figured he needed such a large staff. The conceit, he admits, can be a bit … conceited.
“It’s the attrition of knowing that you’re going to be good. It’s a little bit of arrogance with it as well, right?” Morris said from his office. “We’re going to lose good coaches. And I would like to be able to replace them within. I would like to be able to have guys in place that are training and constantly develop for those roles.
“When you do it, you don’t come into this thing hoping you can win. You go into this thing knowing you can win. And when you know you can win, you’re going to lose people that are curious about what you’re doing and how you’re doing it. And I want to be prepared for that.”
Morris’ beliefs come from experience. He was on Sean McVay’s staff for three seasons, including a Super Bowl-winning one, and saw talented coaches get poached. In his first tour of duty in Atlanta, he recalls a 2016 Falcons staff that lost Kyle Shanahan, Matt LaFleur, Mike LaFleur, Mike McDaniel and Bobby Turner after their Super Bowl run.
Whether you believe the 2024 Falcons are legitimate contenders for a Lombardi run, clearly they do. They believe they’re close….
Source link : https://www.cbssports.com/nfl/news/falcons-raheem-morris-shares-level-of-confidence-entering-year-1-as-he-prepares-team-to-win-remain-winners/
Author : Jonathan Jones
Publish date : 2024-07-12 10:00:51
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