The Falcons competed with eight other NFL teams to find a new head coach, in and the team needs to hire a general manager after selecting Matt Ryan for the newly created position of president of football.
They made their decision Jan. 17, making Kevin Stefanski their 20th head coach.
Since Falcons owner Arthur Blank announced Jan. 4 that the team fired coach Raheem Morris after two seasons, the team had been busy looking for a successor (and they still need a new GM), and the AJC has been busy, too. Our staff of reporters are tracking the Falcons’ moves, and they will continue until the Falcons announce their decisions.
Check out more updates on the Falcons searches here:
With the announcement Tuesday night of Ian Cunningham as the team's general manager, the Falcons have filled the offseason openings with Matt Ryan as president of football, Cunningham as GM and Kevin Stefanski as head coach.
Cunningham will be introduced to the public Tuesday, and our AJC staff will be there to bring you the news and analysis.
Check back here all spring as we bring you the latest from the NFL Scouting Combine all the way to the NFL draft in April and leading to training camp.
Bears assistant general manager Ian Cunningham completed his second interview with the Falcons on Thursday.
The Falcons have interviewed Texans assistant general manager James Liipfert; Steelers assistant general manager Andy Weidl; 49ers director of scouting and football operations Josh Williams; Chiefs assistant general manager Mike Bradway and Eagles senior personnel director Joe Douglas.
Liipfert is set for a second interview.
Cunningham long has been viewed as the front-runner, while Liipfert also is considered a strong candidate from this distinguished group.
The Falcons have the benefit of taking their time, as no other team is in the market for a general manager.
The Falcons have completed general manager interviews with the following individuals:
- Houston Texans assistant general manager James Liipfert
- Pittsburgh Steelers assistant general manager Andy Weidl
- Chicago Bears assistant general manager Ian Cunningham
- San Francisco 49ers director of scouting and football operations Josh Williams
- Kansas City Chiefs assistant general manager Mike Bradway
- Philadelphia Eagles senior personnel director Joe Douglas
The Falcons have completed general manager second interviews with the following individuals:
- Chicago Bears assistant general manager Ian Cunningham
Houston Texans assistant general manager James Liipfert is slated to fly to Atlanta for a second, in-person interview for the vacant Falcons general manager job, according to NFL Media.
He is one of six of candidates who have interviewed for the position.
He was the first person to be interviewed by the Falcons for the GM job.
Liipfert, who played linebacker and was a three-year letter-winner at Georgia Tech, was with the Patriots for nine seasons.
Liipfert, who is from Marshallville in Macon County, runs the Texans' college scouting operation for fall scouting, all-star games, the NFL combine, Pro Days and the NFL draft.
While with the Patriots, he was part of nine division titles, four AFC championships and two Super Bowl wins.
In addition to Liipfert, the Falcons are set to re-interview Ian Cunningham and Josh Williams. Both interviewed for the president of football job that went to Matt Ryan.
Also, Mike Bradway, Chiefs assistant general manager, and Andy Weidl, Steelers assistant general manager, are set to interview for the post.
When the Falcons hired Terry Fontenot to replace Thomas Dimitroff, they interviewed five candidates.
Dwayne Ledford, the architect of the Falcons' run offense over the past two seasons and overall blocking scheme for the past five, is set to join the Ravens, Jeff Zreiec of The Athletic first reported on Monday.
After his first three seasons under coach Arthur Smith, Ledford was promoted to run game coordinator/offensive line coach by Raheem Morris. The run game paved the way for Bijan Robinson's dynamic runs.
Ledford became available after the Falcons hired Bill Callahan to coach their offensive line.
The Falcons coaching staff continues to take shape.
Defensive line coach Nate Ollie, tight ends coach Kevin Koger and secondary coach Justin Hood were retained by Falcons coach Kevin Stefanski, the team announced Monday.
Ollie helped the defensive line contribute heavily to the franchise-record 57 sacks in the 2025 season.
Koger was instrumental in the development of tight end Kyle Pitts over the past two seasons.
Hood helped with the development of the secondary.
Criag Aukerman, formerly of the Dolphins, was named the Falcons special-teams coordinator Monday.
Robert Prince was named wide receivers coach, and Bob Quinn was named senior advisor to coach Kevin Stefanski.
Aukerman will have to revamp the Falcons special-teams units after a dismal season.
He has 26 years of coaching overall, including 16 in the NFL.
The Falcons interviewed two candidates Thursday and four Friday for their general manager vacancy, but did not make an immediate hire.
“The interview process is ongoing and we will continue to announce interviews as they are completed,” according to the team.
The team's search for president of football moved much faster. After two interviews Jan. 8 and three Jan. 9, Matt Ryan was named to the new post Jan. 10.
While the Falcons stated that their search is “ongoing” to find a replacement for general manager Terry Fontenot, they did not confirm there was a second round of interviews for the top candidates.
The Falcons interviewed Bears assistant general manager Ian Cunningham; Texans assistant general manager James Liipfert; Steelers assistant general manager Andy Weidl; 49ers director of scouting and football operations Josh Williams; Chiefs assistant general manager Mike Bradway and Eagles senior personnel director Joe Douglas.
Cunningham long has been viewed as the front-runner, while Liipfert also is considered a strong candidate from this extremely distinguished group.
The Falcons have the benefit of taking their time, as no other team is in the market for a general manager.
Joe Douglas, the former general manager of the New York Jets, completed his interview with the Falcons on Friday, according to the team.
Douglas, 49, was the Jets’ general manager from 2019-24. He is currently a senior personnel director with the Eagles.
He also worked for the Ravens (2000-14), Bears (2015) and Eagles (2016-19).
The Falcons have completed six interviews for the position formerly held by Terry Fontenot:
- Houston Texans assistant general manager James Liipfert
- Pittsburgh Steelers assistant general manager Andy Weidl
- Chicago Bears assistant general manager Ian Cunningham
- San Francisco 49ers director of scouting and football operations Josh Williams
- Kansas City Chiefs assistant general manager Mike Bradway
- Philadelphia Eagles senior personnel director Joe Douglas
Mike Bradway, the Chiefs' assistant general manager, completed his interview with the Falcons for the open general manager position job, according to the team.
Bradway just finished his first season as the assistant general manager after serving four seasons as the Chiefs' senior director of player personnel (2021-24) . He joined the Chiefs in 2018 and was the assistant director of player personnel for three seasons.
Before joining the Chiefs, Bradway spent 10 seasons (2008-17) with the Philadelphia Eagles.
Bradway is the son of longtime NFL personnel executive Terry Bradway, who is a personnel consultant with the Panthers.
The Falcons have completed five interviews for the position formerly held by Terry Fontenot:
- Houston Texans assistant general manager James Liipfert
- Pittsburgh Steelers assistant general manager Andy Weidl
- Chicago Bears assistant general manager Ian Cunningham
- San Francisco 49ers director of scouting and football operations Josh Williams
- Kansas City Chiefs assistant general manager Mike Bradway
Josh Williams, the director of scouting and football operations for the 49ers, completed his interview with the Falcons for the open general manager position Friday, according to the team.
He was a finalist for the Jacksonville GM job last season.
Williams is in his 15th season with the 49ers. He worked his way up from being an area scout. He’s a native of Santa Rosa, California and earned a bachelor’s degree in psychology from Columbia University in 2010.
The Falcons have completed four interviews for the position formerly held by Terry Fontenot:
- Houston Texans assistant general manager James Liipfert
- Pittsburgh Steelers assistant general manager Andy Weidl
- Chicago Bears assistant general manager Ian Cunningham
- San Francisco 49ers director of scouting and football operations Josh Williams
Here is a list of the NFL teams who made coaching changes following the season (with team and former coach and recently hired coach):
Browns: Kevin Stefanski, Todd Monken
Dolphins: Mike McDaniel, Jeff Hafley
Falcons: Raheem Morris, Kevin Stefanski
Cardinals: Jonathan Gannon, Mike LaFleur
Giants: Brian Daboll, John Harbaugh
Raiders: Pete Carroll
Ravens: John Harbaugh, Jesse Minter
Steelers: Mike Tomlin, Mike McCarthy
Titans: Brian Callahan, Robert Saleh
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