Sad news: Atlanta Falcons coach has just been suspended.

In terms of records, Smith’s Falcons excelled in his debut season and had a very strong ground game in his second. This raised hopes that a team that was finally clear of cap issues would be able to advance significantly and emerge as a contender, hopes that were bolstered by the squad’s strong offseason and convenient schedule. Rather, despite being Smith’s area of expertise, the 2023 season turned out to be a catastrophe, with Desmond Ridder literally throwing and fumbling away games, the ground game regressing severely, and the offense as a whole collapsing. The defense’s impressive gains only served to highlight how unsatisfactory an offense with several top ten choices and large contracts was, and as the team’s losses grew, Smith found it increasingly difficult to find solutions.

The Falcons’ two benchings of Desmond Ridder—the second coming after the team miraculously fell to the then-lowly 1-12 Panthers 9-7 in the rain—were undoubtedly the apex of these awful circumstances, but perhaps Smith might have persevered if the last few games had gone smoothly.

If any game could have salvaged Smith, it was a terrific victory over the Colts; nevertheless, the offense misfired once more and the defense struggled terribly in a 20-point road defeat to the Bears.

Then, to finish the season with the biggest stinker of all, Smith’s Falcons managed to stay around for a half until the Saints scored 24 points in a row to take a 41-17 lead over Atlanta, effectively ending the head coach’s career.

Smith had a negative record at the end of 2023, having only four double-digit wins throughout his 51 games in Atlanta, and no winning streaks longer than two games. His 21–30 career record ranks eighth all-time among Falcons full-time coaches, trailing only a few lesser-known players and all of the coaches from the previous 15 years.

Although it’s reasonable to claim that Smith was destroyed by the appalling performance and high number of quarterback turnovers we witnessed this season, Smith appeared to be a strong supporter of Marcus Mariota in 2022 and the pairing of Taylor Heinicke and Desmond Ridder in 2023 from the outside.

Smith was harassed during his tenure despite having three top ten picks in the offensive class because of his incapacity to pass the ball to Kyle Pitts efficiently, Drake London’s inconsistent productivity, and Bijan Robinson’s occasionally dubious usage.

Given that he is unquestionably the play caller and the creator of the offense, Smith was greatly troubled by the noticeable (if uneven) improvement on the defensive end of the ball while the offense stalled. There’s really no way to spin any of this going wrong in a way that exonerates Smith, especially considering that Smith was hired before Terry Fontenot and seemed to have a big say in hiring decisions.

It’s difficult to argue that was anything other than the appropriate decision when the defense’s late collapse, the offense’s problems throughout the season, and the toll losing has taken on the owner and fan base combined to force him out.

Because it appears that Arthur Blank likes Smith personally and really wants this to work out, I still felt the Falcons might keep him. It’s also evident that a large number of his players actually appreciate and respect him.

However, the abhorrent nature of the Saints, Bears, and Panthers defeats, combined with the general disappointment of the 2023 season, rendered it unfeasible to retain him. Even after this Falcons offense collapsed, Smith ought to have no issue getting back on his feet with a position as offensive coordinator somewhere and an opportunity to work his way back into a head coaching position. Given the chaotic situation in Tennessee, it seems like a borderline lock that Mike Vrabel is still there.

Right now, it’s all about making the next hire. There’s no assurance that the Falcons will want to retain Ryan Nielsen for the next head coach, who is probably offensively oriented. Patience ran out a long time ago and there’s enough talent here to be far more competitive than we’ve seen this team be over the past three seasons, so the focus should be on finding someone who can get much, much more out of the roster the Falcons currently have and the quarterback they’re going to have to acquire.

It is imperative that the Falcons break free from their present cycle of incompetence and mediocrity, which has worn everyone who follows this football club thin. We must have faith.