Falcons' Mishandling of Rex Ryan Will Force Them to Settle for Second-Tier Coach

The opportunity was there. 

The Atlanta Falcons could have made the offseason's biggest coaching hire by bringing in Rex Ryan to lead the franchise. The former head coach of the New York Jets wanted to be in Atlanta, and there was mutual interest from the organization. 

Instead, timing and extenuating circumstances will force Falcons owner Arthur Blank to change direction and consider lesser candidates. 

The Buffalo Bills took advantage of Ryan's eagerness to secure his future and announced the coach's hire Saturday. 

The Bills' new owner, Terry Pegula, released a statement once the hire was official, per Mike Rodak of ESPN.com. It read exactly like the type of message the Falcons were attempting to send. 

"

He was very impressive during the interview process, as were many of the candidates to which we spoke, and we feel Rex is the best fit for our team. We look forward to his leadership and expertise in directing our team to the playoffs and bringing a championship to Buffalo for our fans.

"

Positive headlines abounded in Buffalo since news broke that Ryan would become the 19th head coach in Bills history. But all of those same headlines could have been written by the media in Atlanta. 

There are those, like SI.com's Peter King, who questioned the coach's move:

Ryan preferred the Falcons job over the Bills, but he grew impatient.

"Per a source with knowledge of the situation, Rex was in a rush to get his situation resolved. And that resolution came by accepting the offer in Buffalo," ProFootballTalk.com's Mike Florio reported. 

The Bills weren't even Ryan's second choice. The San Francisco 49ers were. 

"Ryan called the 49ers later in the [Saturday] morning to find out if they had any intention of bringing him back for a second interview, but confusion over the Falcons job stung him most," sources told the New York Daily News' Manish Mehta.

Ryan was willing to give the Falcons some time after his initial interview earlier in the week, but the interest was never fully reciprocated. 

"Ryan would have canceled his trip to Buffalo Thursday morning if the Falcons had committed to bringing him back for a second sit-down, according to sources, but there was hesitation on the team’s part," Mehta reported. 

A second interview was never scheduled. 

Some of the Falcons' hesitation can be explained by the death of Blank's 99-year-old mother. Every person should be given time to grieve. 

Unfortunately, the NFL machine doesn't stop turning. One man's misfortune becomes another's opportunity. The Bills' new ownership simply capitalized. 

A potential bidding war was also averted by the Falcons. According to FOX Sports' Alex Marvez, Buffalo's new management was willing to open its wallet: 

Ryan officially signed a five-year, $27 million contract Monday. 

Blank needs to lean heavily on the leadership he's instilled within the organization in the coming days for a hire to be made. NFL Network's Ian Rapoport reported two candidates emerged as the Falcons' preferred choices after the initial wave of interviews:

Dan Quinn and Todd Bowles lack in two key areas compared to Ryan: experience and consistent track record.

Clearly, the Falcons' emphasis during the search falls on the defensive side of the football. After finishing 32nd in total defense, three of the game's top defensive minds emerging as the top candidates shouldn't come as a surprise. 

However, the Falcons will have competition for Quinn if they eventually choose to go that route. 

The New York Jets favor Seattle's defensive coordinator, and Jets owner Woody Johnson appears willing to wait for the Seahawks' current playoff run to end before making a strong push for Quinn's services. 

As impressive as the Seahawks have been on the defensive side of the ball the last two seasons, Quinn was merely the guiding force. He wasn't the original architect of the "Legion of Boom." That responsibility fell on Gus Bradley before he was named the head coach of the Jacksonville Jaguars. 

Bowles, meanwhile, emerged as the favorite to become the next head coach of the Falcons. 

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution's D. Orlando Ledbetter reported Bowles will interview with the organization a second time on Wednesday. Ledbetter even speculated that Bowles could be named the Falcons' new head coach by the end of that day. 

Arizona's defensive coordinator is one of the top assistants ready to take the next step in his career and become a head coach, but his previous track record simply doesn't stack up against Ryan's. 

Year	Team	Total defense	Run defense	Pass Defense
2005	Ravens	5th	9th	8th
2006	Ravens	1st	2nd	6th
2007	Ravens	6th	2nd	20th
2008	Ravens	2nd	3rd	2nd
2009	Jets	1st	8th	1st
2010	Jets	3rd	3rd	6th
2011	Jets	5th	13th	5th
2012	Jets	8th	26th	2nd
2013	Jets	11th	3rd	22nd
2014	Jets	6th	4th	14th

The Cardinals were one of the most physical defenses in the NFL last season, but the unit still finished 24th overall in total defense. Even with Patrick Peterson at one cornerback, the unit was also surprisingly poor against the pass and finished 29th overall.  

During his three years as a defensive coordinator, Bowles' units finished 15th, 6th and 24th in total defense. It's not exactly an overwhelming resume. 

Bowles' two biggest selling points are his previous experience as an interim head coach in 2011 with the Miami Dolphins, when the team finished 2-1 under his direction. Plus, Bowles has ties to Falcons assistant general manager Scott Pioli. 

"Bowles is believed to have a major supporter in the Falcons hierarchy in assistant general manager Scott Pioli, who’s father-in-law is Bill Parcells," Ledbetter wrote. "Bowles worked for Parcells in Dallas and Miami."

A perfect example of how the NFL is far too reliant on cronyism. 

ESPN's Adam Schefter reported a third candidate emerged alongside Bowles: 

Teryl Austin impressed this season by leading the league's second-ranked defense. However, it was his only season as a coordinator at the NFL level. 

The Steelers hired Mike Tomlin in 2007 after only one year as a coordinator, which worked out in Pittsburgh's favor, but it's a leap of faith to believe a candidate can quickly make the transition from coordinator to head coach. 

This unofficial final three is comprised of talented coaches and worthy candidates. It doesn't make them the right candidates, though. 

Ryan was the best fit for the Falcons.

The former Jets head coach is loud, boastful and brilliant with his defensive schemes. He is the antithesis of what Mike Smith was as head coach. Ryan's experience as a head coach and defensive track record spoke for themselves. 

Ryan would have been able to turn the defense around quickly and provided a face for the franchise when the organization started to sell tickets for a new stadium in 2017. 

The Falcons must change gears and hire the absolute right person for the job. Other than Ryan, that is.


Brent Sobleski covers the NFC South for Bleacher Report. Follow him on Twitter.