Falcons owner Arthur Blank is promising changes, but not at the top.
Blank just put out a statement ending the speculation about the status of General Manager Thomas Dimitroff, saying he was staying and any changes in the personnel department will be below him.
“My commitment to our fans is to put the best possible product on the field each year,” Blank said. “No one is satisfied with an 8-8 record, but I am very pleased with the direction of our team under the leadership of Dan Quinn and confident in his long-term approach. No question, we took some positive steps forward this year and have a good foundation our existing coaching staff can build upon.
“Over the last week, we have conducted an exhaustive review of every area of our team. Through this process it has become very clear to me that Coach Quinn and Thomas Dimitroff have built a productive working relationship over the last 11 months. There is very good alignment between Dan and Thomas on the direction we need to go to improve our team and I believe maintaining the continuity of that relationship, with Scott Pioli continuing to assist Thomas, is the right way forward.
“We are going to make a number of changes to our pro personnel and college scouting departments and that process began this week. It will take some time, but we will be adding talent on the pro personnel side and re-organizing both of these groups to best align with the shared vision of Coach Quinn and Thomas Dimitroff. I expect these changes will produce positive results for our team.”
Dimitroff did a solid job building the Falcons into a contender, though the team has plateaued in recent years. But with Quinn just completing his first year as a coach, removing Dimitroff (and probably Scott Pioli with him) would have just lengthened the time of the rebuild.