The Bow Tie Chronicles – Atlanta Falcons

Falcons interim head coach Raheem Morris and his re-configured coaching staff asked the players to play a little harder and they did against the Minnesota Vikings. The Falcons earned their first win of the season. In a dominating performance. Wide receiver Julio Jones returned and the defense had three interceptions against the Vikings. The Falcons built a 23-0 lead and didn't collapse down the stretch.

The Falcons and the Vikings were hoping to be playoff contenders in the NFC, but are off to horrible starts. The Falcons are 0-5 and the Vikings are 1-4 after a fourth-down gamble by Vikings coach Mike Zimmer backfired in a 27-26 loss to Seattle last week. Interim head coach Raheem Morris is 1-0 against the Vikings from his stint as Tampa Bay's head coach. Zimmer, who was Atlanta's defensive coordinator in 2007, is 4-0 against the Falcons.

The Falcons have a chance to be trail blazers and help fix the NFL's abysmal minority hiring record. We go over the list of the top minority candidates for the vacant head coach and general manager positions after the firing of Dan Quinn and general manager Thomas Dimitroff on Sunday. With NFL's shift to more spread and college-oriented attacks, the Falcons have to interview Clemson's play-caller Tony Elliott.

In his first season as an NFL head coach, the Panthers' Matt Rhule has his team off to a 2-2 start and are tied for second place in the NFC South. Quarterback Teddy Bridgewater and running back Mike Davis, who played at Stephenson High and South Carolina, have helped them post wins over the Chargers and Cardinals. Wide receiver Robby Anderson is also off to a good start.

The Falcons fell behind 20-3 and were no match for the powerful Packers, who controlled the line of scrimmage. With quarterback Aaron Rodgers spreading the ball around to running backs and tight ends, the Falcons had no answers on defense. Rodgers, without his top two wide receivers, tossed four touchdown pass. The Packers eased their foot off the gas pedal in the second half and cruised to a 30-16 victory..

In the 2015th episode of The Bow Tie Chronicles podcast, we take a look at Aaron Rodgers and the undefeated Green Bay Packers. The game will pit the NFL's defense that is giving up the most points against the offense that is scoring the most points.

They say football is offense , defense and special teams and the Falcons failed in all three phases as they blew another double-digit lead in the 30-26 loss to the Chicago Bears on Sunday at Mercedes-Benz Stadium. They had a 16-point lead and gave up three touchdown passes on defense in the span 4 minutes, 27 seconds, the offense couldn't run off some clock to help the defense and kicker Younghoe Koo, who was injured, missed a field goal and an extra point.

The Falcons will face a stout defense from the Chicago Bears that is anchored by linebacker Khalil Mack, defensive end Robert Quinn, linebacker Roquan Smith and safety Eddie Jackson. Bears coach Matt Nagy discusses their 17-13 win over the Giants and how Quinn helps their defense. Also, we get initial impressions from Falcons offensive coordinator Dirk Koetter.

The Falcons built a 20-0 lead, but they went to lose 40-39 to the Dallas Cowboys to drop to 0-2 on the season. The Falcons failed to take out the Cowboys early. When the game came down to an onsides kick, the Falcons didn't appear to know the rules as they watched the football roll on the ground when they could have dove it to end the game.

Special guest Clarence Hill, the Dallas Cowboys long-time beat writer for the Fort Worth Star-Telegram, stops by to help us preview the Falcons' upcoming opponent. Both teams struggled in their season-opening losses and will look to get things turned around in Week 2. Also, Falcons OC Dirk Koetter stops by to discuss analytics and the running back rotation behind Todd Gurley.

The Falcons misfired while trying to bold in the opener against Seattle. The secondary was abused in coverage and the offense and special teams went 0 for 4 on fourth down conversions. Coach Dan Quinn and defensive tackle Grady Jarrett stop by to tell us what happened in the 38-25 loss to the Seattle Seahawks.

The Falcons are set to open the season against quarterback Russell Wilson and the Seattle Seahawks at 1 p.m. Sunday at Mercedes-Benz Stadium. The Seahawks have concerns with depth at wide receiver and how they will generate a pass rush after having just 28 sacks last season. Seattle coach Pete Carroll stops by along with Falcons offensive coordinator Dirk Koetter and middle linebacker Deion Jones.

In a special edition episode of The Bow Tie Chronicles we looked at the Falcons' revamped 53-man roster. The team replaced 19 players and five starters from the last game of 2019. After going 7-9 in back to back season, the Falcons appear much stronger and are clearly banking on the offensive line, with four of the five same starters, to improve drastically in 2020.

Falcons coach Dan Quinn said the coaching braintrust has been meeting on cutting down the roster from 80 players to 53 players by the 4 p.m. Saturday league-mandated deadline. The Falcons have to consider the game-day roster (top 45), the 53 man roster and the 16 practice squad players.

Falcons defensive end Takkarist McKinley is set to enter his fourth year with the team and said that he still believes in himself. He had seven sacks as a rookie, but did not progress over the next two seasons. The team declined his fifth-year $10.3 million option and that lit a fire in him. .

Back in 2004, Falcons part-owner Warrick Dunn was the team's main running back and Jason Wright was trying to stick on the team back in 2004. After Wright was named the CEO of the Washington Football Team -- the first African-American to hold that role in over 100 years -- they both are NFL executives. Also, tight end Hayden Hurst and defensive lineman Marlon Davidson drop by to give us updates on training camp.

Falcons general manager discusses the team's return amidst the pandemic, the first-round pick offseason program, the return of J.J. Wilcox and the pending salary cap situation the team faces in 2021.

We discuss how the Falcons, Saints and Eagles will face dire salary cap situations in 2021 with the loss of revenue around the league from the coronavirus pandemic. Also, running back Todd Gurley and first-round pick A.J. Terrell check in on testing issues and joining the Falcons.

The Falcons had their first player, rookie safety Jaylinn Hawkins, placed on the Reserve/COVID-19 list. The veterans starting their testing process on Tuesday. Falcons coach Dan Quinn discusses how they are planning on moving forward through the testing, re-testing and strength and conditioning programs.

The NFL is trying to play during the coronavirus pandemic and we look at some of the medical and testing issues with the help of Dr. Rand McClain and NFLPA executive director DeMaurice Smith and president J.C. Tretter of the Cleveland Browns. The Falcons rookies signed their contracts and reported for testing. The Falcons are moving forward while following the protocols set by the NFL and the NFLPA.