SI ranks Falcons QB-head coach duo middle of the road

THE Atlanta Falcons will enter the 2024 NFL season with a new head coach in Raheem Morris and a new running back coach in Kirk Cousins. Many experts said this would make a significant difference for the Falcons in the NFC South this fall.

Sports Illustrated’s Matt Verderame seems to agree. In his May 30 rankings of NFL coach-quarterback duos, Verderame placed the Morris-Cousins ​​combination 17th overall.

Although the Falcons narrowly missed the top half of the standings, they were the highest-rated duo in the NFC South.

“If Cousins ​​is healthy, this offense should be dangerous with a myriad of weapons including Drake London, Kyle Pitts and Bijan Robinson.”

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“If Cousins ​​is healthy, this offense should be dangerous with a myriad of weapons including Drake London, Kyle Pitts and Bijan Robinson.”

Verderame’s ranking of 17th for Morris-Cousins ​​is roughly in line with similar offseason lists from other outlets. In a recent CBS Sports quarterback rankings, Cousins ​​sat at No. 14.

Assuming Verderame agrees with this list from CBS Sports, it makes sense that Morris lowered the duo’s rankings slightly. Morris has had a lot of success as a defensive coordinator in recent years, but as a young head coach more than a decade ago, he struggled with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

Morris also hired a first-time offensive coordinator in Zach Robinson. Robinson is an unknown who could turn positive by the end of the season.

Morris led the Buccaneers to a 17-31 record in three seasons. He also received an opportunity as interim head coach with the Falcons in 2020. Atlanta went 4-7 with him at the helm.

Morris will get a second chance with Atlanta in a division Verderame doesn’t appear to have high expectations for this season. Verderame ranked last year’s division champion QB-head coach duo — Baker Mayfield and Todd Bowles — 20th on his list.

The New Orleans Saints and Carolina Panthers were both in the bottom five of the list. With new head coach Dave Canales and second-year quarterback Bryce Young, Verderame has the Panthers ranked second-to-last.

Interestingly, the Morris-Cousins ​​duo was also the highest-rated new QB-head coach duo on Verderame’s roster. Of the other three new duos, the next closest at No. 17 was the Washington Commanders with Dan Quinn and Jayden Daniels.

The Las Vegas Raiders and New England Patriots also have a new head coach and new quarterback since the start of last season. Verderame ranked these franchises’ QB-head coach duos among the bottom three.

In last place, New England was the only team behind Carolina on the list.

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