Rams’ defensive coordinator Raheem Morris fired

Raheem Morris, the defensive coordinator for the Los Angeles Rams, was selected by the Atlanta Falcons as head coach following a thorough search that included six-time Super Bowl winner Bill Belichick.

Having been the Falcons’ interim head coach for the final 11 games of the 2020 season following Dan Quinn’s sacking, 47-year-old Morris is well-known in Atlanta. He spent three seasons as the Tampa Bay Buccaneers’ coach in the past.

After interviewing 14 candidates—Belichick being the most notable—the Falcons selected Morris.

Bobby Slowik, the offensive coordinator for the Houston Texans, was interviewed again by the team earlier on Thursday. Ultimately, the Falcons chose to hire a seasoned coach who has been in the league since 2002, with the exception of one season during which he was in Atlanta from 2015 to 2020.

Together with general manager Terry Fontenot, another Black person, Morris becomes the first non-interim Black coach in Falcons history and takes charge of a team that hasn’t had a winning season since 2017.

The hiring guarantees the highest number of minority head coaches ever—at least nine—to begin the 2024 season.

Morris transferred to the Rams after Arthur Smith was chosen for the Falcons position following the 2020 campaign. He invested three seasons as the defensive coordinator for that team; during his first year, the squad won the Super Bowl.