NFL insider reports Arthur Blank “trending toward” keeping Smith, Fontenot

Entering the Falcons Week 15 contest against the Panthers, it was believed that Arthur Smith’s job was safe.

It was noted that the notion barred a late-season collapse. Smith’s offense proceeded to put up just seven points against a lifeless, coachless Carolina club that eventually won the game on a walk-off field goal.

Nobody was quite sure what a “late-season collapse” entailed but losing to the 1-12 Panthers had to fit the billing in some capacity. It’s the kind of loss that causes heads to roll, and the speculation of Smith’s job security was rampant.

Eventually, in an already scheduled interview, Arthur Blank answered those questions, voicing his support of Smith and refused to add to the speculation.

In response to a question concerning his head coach’s future, Blank stated, “We’re going to play these final three games; we play ’em to win ’em.”

And after the season is over, we’ll decide what to do. It’s clear that this year has not gone as planned.

Despite a dominant victory over the Colts, that position remained the same. “There are two games left to play. Watch what transpires.

We’ll play these final two, like I mentioned last week, and we’ll take it from there, Blank stated, as reported by The Athletic.

Given that Taylor Heinicke did not commit a turnover and the Falcons amassed a season-high 29 points and 406 yards of total offense on Sunday, it is quite likely that Smith saved his job.

This season has been so disheartening because of the kind of performance; Smith and Terry Fontenot appear to have the potential to reach that goal in 2024.

According to Albert Breer, Arthur Blank is trending toward giving Smith and Fontenot another year.

“The Falcons are the enigma,” Breer writes. “They’ve hit on draft picks. They’ve hit on free agents. They’ve built strength along the lines of scrimmage and sure look like a rising young team in a lot of ways.

But the plan to tread water at quarterback has not gone the way Arthur Smith and Terry Fontenot drew it up, which led to Taylor Heinicke’s reinsertion into the lineup Sunday.

And, yet, in a weird way, Heinicke being back in there showed where the ceiling for this team is, how the group is still ascending, and why Arthur Blank is trending toward giving Smith and Fontenot another year”.

There are still two games to go, and as we’ve seen before, these feelings can change after one bad Sunday. The Falcons still have a chance to make the postseason but will need some help.

As I’ve always felt, it was unlikely for Blank to fire Smith because the quarterback has been the biggest issue in the team’s shortcomings.

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