FLOWER BRANCH — Raheem Morris, the Falcons’ obviously disappointed coach, discussed how the once-promising 2024 regular season fell apart.
The Falcons were the popular offseason favorite to win the NFC South after acquiring quarterback Kirk Cousins in free agency and hiring Morris, who was the Rams’ defensive coordinator.
The Falcons appeared like an excellent choice as they began the season 6-3. But in New Orleans for their tenth game of the season, things began to unravel as generally reliable kicker Younghoe Koo missed three field-goal tries and Cousins fumbled four fourth-quarter drives. The Falcons would only win two of their final eight games (against Desmond Ridder and the Raiders and Drew Lock and the Giants).
The Falcons’ slump into the center of the NFL left them with an 8-9 record and ninth place in the NFC standings, falling short of the seven-team playoffs and missing the postseason for the sixth consecutive season.
The Falcons and Panthers have the NFL’s second-longest playoff drought, trailing only the New York Jets, who have missed the playoffs for the 14th straight season.
“Disappointed for our organization, for ourselves, for our fan base, for all of us,” Morris said on Monday. “The task has to begin today. Today marks the beginning of 2025 for us. “The process has already started.”
The Falcons will adopt a collaborative approach to addressing the coaching staff and personnel in the goal of competing for the Vince
The Lombardi Trophy is awarded to the Super Bowl champion.”Obviously, the things we have to do myself, (general manager) Terry (Fontenot), (president) Greg Beadles, all of us involved,” Morris told the crowd. “Getting together and working out how to get to where we want to be. Find a means to get there.
The Falcons finished second in the NFC South. They passed the Saints, who ended tied for last with the Panthers (5-12).
“We have to go out and find ways to get better,” Morris added. “We need to maintain the growth mindset that we started this year but were unable to complete. We came up short, which is disheartening for all of us.
The Falcons dropped four games.
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