Atlanta Falcons fire Jim Mora as coach
 |
Bill Jempty | Monday, January 1, 2007 |
The firing comes only two years after Mora took the Falcons to the NFC Championship game.
The decision to dump the fiery coach followed two straight disappointing seasons. The Falcons lost six of their final eight games in 2005 to miss the playoffs, and they finished 7-9 this season by losing seven of the last nine contests.
Owner Arthur Blank made the announcement at the team’s suburban training complex.
Atlanta went into the final weekend with a slim chance to slip into the playoffs with a .500 record. That ended Saturday night when the
New York Giants won at Washington; the Falcons closed the season Sunday with a meaningless 24-17 loss at Philadelphia.Mora’s final game was in the same stadium where the Falcons lost to the Eagles for the NFC championship at the end of the 2004 season, coming up one victory short of the Super Bowl.
The 45-year-old Mora, son of longtime NFL coach Jim Mora, went 26-22 in three seasons as Atlanta’s coach.
A former defensive coordinator in San Francisco, the younger Mora led the Falcons to the NFC South title in his rookie season. The team slumped to 8-8 a year ago, then endured his first losing record.
Very intense coaches often wear out their welcome with players after a few years. I don’t follow the Falcons enough to know if that is what happened in Mora’s case.
Jim Mora is the first firing of the NFL postseason. How many more coaches will quit or get fired? Five? Six?
- Atlanta Falcons hire Mike Smith to be head Coach
- Cards fire Dennis Green after 3 losing seasons
- Bobby Petrino resigns as Atlanta Falcons coach
- Dolphins Interview Mike Shula
- Air Force Coach Fisher DeBerry Retires
- Falcons Sign 46-Year-Old Morten Andersen
- Jim Harbaugh Hired as Stanford Head Coach
- Chargers Hire Norv Turner as Head Coach
- Dolphins add Pete Carroll as candidate
- The Billick enigma
- Life imitates Dash Parr
- Frank Cornish, Cowboys Super Bowl Lineman, Dies at 40
- Gene Upshaw Dies of Pancreatic Cancer
- Phelps: 8 Golds and 8 World Records?
- Kyle Busch wins Watkins Glen
- When Irish eyes are smiling…again- Padrig Harrington wins the PGA Championship
- Oh no- Amy Yang wins the Scandinavian TPC
- Let me repeat myself- LPGA Tour Commisioner Carolyn Bivens has to go
- Former US Open Champ Orville ‘Sarge’ Moody dead at 74
- NY Jets release QB Chad Pennington
|
Permalink
| Send TrackBack
- Cards fire Dennis Green after 3 losing seasons linked with OTB Sports
Comments are Closed
