Tag: Arthur Blank

WATCH: Matt Ryan holds retirement press conference in Atlanta

WATCH: Matt Ryan holds retirement press conference in Atlanta after signing 1-day contract with Falcons

Former Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan signed a one-day contract in Atlanta before officially retiring from the NFL on Monday afternoon. Ryan is currently holding a press conference in Atlanta with team owner Arthur Blank.

Watch the full press conference live, as shared by the team’s Twitter account below:

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Robert Kraft reportedly played ‘big part’ in Falcons not hiring Bill Belichick

ESPN’s bombshell article reveals the role Robert Kraft reportedly played in the Falcons passing on Bill Belichick

New England Patriots coach Bill Belichick thought he had the Atlanta Falcons head coaching job in the bag, along with the rest of the outside world.

All of the signs pointed towards Falcons owner Arthur Blank green lighting a team-up with the man responsible for helping hand his team their most embarrassing loss in franchise history at Super Bowl LI. But then out of nowhere, it was announced that former Los Angeles Rams defensive coordinator Raheem Morris would be taking over as the Falcons’ new head coach.

And just like that, the Belichick chatter was over, and people were left scratching their heads at why the six-time Super Bowl-winning head coach couldn’t land the job.

ESPN reported a phone conversation during the interview process between Blank and Patriots owner Robert Kraft. Blank spoke with Kraft in an effort to check Belichick’s references and get a feel for how the owner who knew him better than anyone experienced him behind the scenes.

A bombshell article published on Wednesday, via Seth Wickersham, Don Van Natta Jr. and Jeremy Fowler said:

But in a conversation with Blank, Kraft delivered a stark assessment of Belichick’s character, according to a source who spoke to two people: a close Kraft friend and a longtime Belichick confidant. The source quoted the Belichick source as saying, “Robert called Arthur to warn him not to trust Bill.” That account was backed up, the source said, by the close Kraft friend.

Multiple sources said that Kraft spoke with “some candor” to Blank about Belichick, though the sources declined to elaborate. One source close to Belichick said Kraft “was a big part” of why the Falcons passed on hiring him.

A spokesperson for Kraft denied there was anything disparaging said about Belichick in the two phone conversations with Blank in January. However, there was the possibility he might have been critical of Belichick before those specific conversations.

If true, it’s a messy situation that doesn’t necessarily paint the Patriots’ owner in the best light.

Steve Kerr and Kyle Shanahan recommended Dan Quinn to Commanders

Dan Quinn received some high-profile recommendations before landing the Commanders’ job.

“It’s not what you know; it’s who you know.”

We’ve all heard this numerous times in life. Sometimes it is meant as a negative complaint that some people receive jobs when they actually aren’t qualified, but know someone who helped them obtain the job.

Other times, it is referenced because two or more candidates for a job might seem to be so evenly matched, but when a certain person vouches for one of the candidates, that is a good thing, and you feel confident in choosing them for the job.

John Keim, ESPN Washington Commanders insider, reported Saturday that during the Commanders’ recent coaching search, NBA Golden State Warriors head coach Steve Kerr recommended Dan Quinn for the Commanders’ job.

Keim wrote that Kerr, a four-time NBA champion head coach for the Warriors, had begun a friendship with Quinn. Apparently, their agents work for the same company. As Kerr and Quinn interacted and became better friends over the years, Kerr began to believe in Quinn.

Thus, knowing Bob Myers was on the Commanders advisory committee, Kerr texted Myers: “He’s your guy; you’ve got to hire him.”

Richard Sherman, who played for Quinn in Seattle, texted newly hired Commanders GM Adam Peters and Kyle Shanahan, Quinn’s offensive coordinator in Atlanta, highly praised Quinn to Peters as well.

Keim reported, “Perhaps the biggest endorsement came from Falcons owner Arthur Blank. Blank, who fired Quinn in 2020 after six seasons with the Falcons, reached out to Harris unsolicited on Quinn’s behalf. ‘To have Atlanta endorse Dan was powerful,’ one person involved said.”

Championship coaches like Kerr can recognize certain qualities or beliefs another coach may or may not possess. And working under a coach, as Shanahan did, provided an opportunity to hear how one may have expertise in their field. The recommendations from Sherman and Shanahan might, more importantly, reveal how one exercises their power rightly or wrongly.

Apparently, Kerr, Shanahan, Sherman, and Blank confidently affirmed their belief in Dan Quinn as a leader, coach, and human being.

WATCH: Falcons owner Arthur Blank addresses the state of the team

WATCH: Falcons owner Arthur Blank holds Friday press conference discussing Raheem Morris, Bill Belichick and the future at quarterback

Atlanta Falcons owner Arthur Blank held a virtual press conference with local reporters on Friday afternoon to discuss the recent hiring of head coach Raheem Morris.

Blank, who was unable to attend Morris’ introductory press conference last week, touched on a number of other topics, including the Bill Belichick rumors, the future at the quarterback position, and why Morris was the right man for the job in Atlanta.

Watch the full interview, as shared by the team’s YouTube channel below.

Arthur Blank says Falcons ‘have to figure out’ future at QB position

Falcons owner Arthur Blank on future at QB: “This is a position we have to figure out how we’re going to get better in 2024 and beyond”

Atlanta Falcons owner Arthur Blank wasn’t able to attend head coach Raheem Morris’ introductory press conference last week due to a medical condition. Now that Blank is feeling better, he decided to hold a virtual press conference with reporters on Friday afternoon.

Blank discussed several topics, from the recent Bill Belichick rumors to the future of the quarterback position in Atlanta. According to Blank, the team never offered Belichick the head coach job.

As for the quarterbacks, the Falcons owner didn’t offer a clear picture of the team’s plans. “This is a position we have to figure out how we’re going to get better in 2024 and beyond.”

Falcons owner says Bill Belichick was never offered head coach job

Falcons owner Arthur Blank said Bill Belichick was never offered the head coaching job in Atlanta

The Atlanta Falcons had a long and thorough coaching search before hiring Rams defensive coordinator Raheem Morris. Despite rumors that former Patriots head coach Bill Belichick was the favorite, the team went in a different direction after conducting multiple interviews with Belichick.

This left many wondering why the two sides couldn’t reach a deal, with some in the media reporting that Belichick wanted too much control. Falcons owner Arthur Blank held a virtual press conference on Friday and claimed that Belichick never asked for full control of the team, per ESPN’s Michael Rothstein.

Not only did Blank state that Belichick’s rumored demands were false, he said the Falcons never even offered the former Patriots head coach the job.

Blank was referring to Boomer Esiason, who reported that he heard Belichick was in fact offered the job in Atlanta. Regardless of what actually happened, the Falcons hired Morris and he’s arguably a better fit than the 71-year-old Belichick.

Falcons owner Arthur Blank discusses hiring head coach Raheem Morris

Falcons owner Arthur Blank holds press conference to discuss hiring of head coach Raheem Morris

The Atlanta Falcons introduced Raheem Morris as the 19th head coach in franchise history last week, but team owner Arthur Blank couldn’t attend the press conference due to a medical issue.

Blank appeared at last night’s NFL Honors ceremony and is currently holding a press conference to discuss hiring Morris as head coach among other topics. Since the team isn’t streaming Blank’s press conference, here’s what we could find from beat reporters on Twitter.

On why Rich McKay left football operations:

On Bill Belichick rumors:

On Falcons QB situation:

Watch: Full press conference

WATCH: Atlanta Falcons introduce head coach Raheem Morris

WATCH: Atlanta Falcons hold press conference introducing head coach Raheem Morris

After meeting with 14 different coaching candidates, the Atlanta Falcons eventually hired Raheem Morris as the 19th head coach in team history. Morris, 47, spent the last three years as the defensive coordinator of the Los Angeles Rams and now returns to Atlanta where he coached for six seasons (2015-2020).

The Falcons officially introduced Morris as the head coach on Monday afternoon. Watch the full press conference below, as shared by the team’s YouTube channel.

Falcons preparing for a second interview with Bill Belichick

Could Bill Belichick be headed for the NFC South? The Falcons are preparing for a second interview with the longtime Patriots coach:

Could Bill Belichick be headed for the NFC South? The Atlanta Falcons are preparing for a second interview with the longtime New England Patriots head coach, per NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport, who adds that Belichick met with Falcons owner Arthur Blank one-on-one and that “things are ramping up” in discussions between the two parties.

The New Orleans Saints beat the snot out of Tom Brady for several years to close out his career. Maybe they’ll get a chance at taking on another Patriots legend in Belichick twice a season, too, after beating his team 34-0 early in the 2023 campaign.

How the organization would shake out with Belichick at the top is curious. It might not mean anything good for Falcons general manager Terry Fontenot, the former Saints pro scouting director, if Belichick wants the same control over personnel. Fontenot has built a strong roster on both sides of the ball but he hasn’t found a quarterback who can lead them. If Belichick gets that right, Atlanta could continue to challenge New Orleans for years to come.

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Meet the Strategic Sports Group investors, PGA Tour and Saudi PIF executives vying for a place in pro golf’s future

Both tours, the SSG and PIF have an unprecedented opportunity to reshape professional golf as we know it.

On Dec. 10, the PGA Tour’s policy board announced it had agreed to advance discussions with the Strategic Sports Group (SSG) – an outside investment group comprised of U.S.-based professional sports team investors. This, of course, came six months after the PGA Tour, DP World and Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund entered a shocking framework agreement to create a for-profit entity known as PGA Tour Enterprises.

On New Year’s Eve, PGA Tour commissioner Jay Monahan updated players on the “meaningful progress” made in negotiations with the SSG and that while the framework agreement deadline of Dec. 31 with the PIF was missed, discussions with the Saudi-backed fund remained “active and productive.”

If both the SSG and PIF are involved as much as $7 billion may be in play, according to ESPN. Both tours, the SSG and PIF have an unprecedented opportunity to reshape professional golf as we know it. The decisions made over the next weeks and months could see the game propelled into the future. But if agreements aren’t reached and the division at the pro level continues, the sport we all love could quickly become tennis, where only the majors receive in-depth coverage while the week-to-week action on tour is relegated to a footnote.

From the consortium of SSG investors to the PIF and PGA Tour executives involved, get to know the people who may have a prominent place in professional golf’s future.

MORE: Breaking down the impact of extending PGA Tour, Saudi PIF and investor negotiations