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The Falcons have been on the search for their next head coach and general manager for a few months now and there’s been no indication as to who could be the final candidates. But, finally, we have some signs pointing to a possible duo.
According to several reports, the team has narrowed it down to Saints Vice President of director of scouting, Terry Fontenot as the general manager hire, and Carolina Panthers offensive coordinator, Joe Brady as the next head coach.
CBS Sports reporter Jonathan Jones said inside sources have confirmed the duo but the Falcons are still conducting their search anyway.
Said this on @CBSSportsNet yesterday: sources have told me a Terry Fontenot/Joe Brady union in Atlanta is very possible. Of course the Falcons are still conducting their robust search for a GM and HC.
The Athletic’s Jeff Schultz hopped on the train and said the Falcons are conducting second interviews before finalizing anything.
And local Atlanta reporter Zach Klein said he would be ‘very surprised’ if the Fontenot-Brady combo didn’t happen.
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Fontenot Worked His Way Up The Saints Ladder
Fontenot worked his way up the Saints’ front office ladder for a long time and is on his 18th season with the franchise. He started in a marketing role and is now considered to be Mickey Loomie’s right-hand man as director of scouting.
Since taking on a pro personnel role, he has been a major key in landing some top players to boost the defense, including linebacker Demario Davis, linebacker Kwon Alexander and defensive ends Cameron Jordan and Trey Hendrickson, and safety Malcolm Jenkins.
To top it off, Fontenot is well-liked across the league and respected for his talent to identify the best prospects.
Before being promoted to his current role, Fontenot spent seven years as a professional scout for New Orleans. The Saints will close in on their fourth consecutive NFC South title and have dominated the Atlanta Falcons in recent years, winning six of seven meetings.
Fontenot is a former ball player himself and played safety at Tulane (1999-2002). He was the team captain in 2001 and also made the 2002 Hawaii Bowl team.
He went back to school in 2012 where he attended Stanford Business School’s executive-education NFL-Stanford program, which is well-known in the NFL for training future executives.
Joe Brady Is Connected To The Saints As Well
Joe Brady, just 31-years-old, kicked off his career four years ago as a graduate assistant at Penn State then moved on to be an offensive assistant coach under Sean Payton of the New Orleans Saints. From there, he went to Baton Rouge as the passing game coordinator and wide receivers coach at LSU, where he won a national championship ring. And then he was named the offensive coordinator of the Carolina Panthers.
Brady’s career path has been quick to the NFL has been quick and successful. The Falcons are reportedly not the only one eyeing him for a head coaching role.
Brady really made a name for himself when he went to LSU and played a major role in Joe Burrow becoming a Heisman Trophy, which turned into him being the No. 1 overall draft pick by the Cincinnati Bengals.
After one season with the Panthers, the offense ranked 21st overall in total yards per game (349.5), No. 18 in passing yards per game (243.0), No. 21 in rushing yards per game (106.5), and 24th overall in points per game (21.9).
Coming to Atlanta to run an entire team would be a huge task for Brady, but having a coaching staff full of veterans around him would be ideal.
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Falcons Potential Head Coach-GM Combo Gaining Steam: Report