FLOWERY BRANCH — Falcons owner Arthur Blank guides his franchise by, among other maxims, “the best or nothing.” For instance, that drove the decision to renovate the team’s locker room and weight rooms this offseason. Both spaces received “F” grades in February in the annual NFL-wide players-union survey, although the renovations were planned before the report card was released. (Blank himself earned an A-minus, a little something to spruce up his LinkedIn page.)
And it presumably spoke to Blank’s willingness to spend lavishly ($100 million guaranteed) on quarterback Kirk Cousins in free agency.
But, as Falcons fans know, the performance on the field in recent years has been “nothing,” as in no playoff berths or winning seasons since then-quarterback Matt Ryan led the Falcons to a 10-6 record in 2017.
They’re one of only four teams not to have made the postseason in the past six seasons, reluctantly finding company with the Denver Broncos, New York Jets and Carolina Panthers. This nugget presumably will be left out of Blank’s induction ceremony into the team’s Ring of Honor.
So will the tampering penalty assessed to his team for what the NFL called “logistical violations” related to the March signings of free agents Cousins, wide receiver Darnell Mooney and tight end Charlie Woerner (a 2025 fifth-round pick, a $250,000 fine and a $50,000 fine for general manager Terry Fontenot). In addressing the matter Tuesday, Blank said that the NFL “found there were certain things that were deficient in the way that we handled things with Kirk, and so we’ve addressed those things internally.”
Regardless, Blank’s ownership will go into its 23rd season with his team’s fans still waiting on a Lombardi Trophy. He gave an extensive answer when I asked him about that reality at a news conference that Blank gave at the team’s complex.
“Well, I think for many years, we had a very, very competitive team, and had year after year of winning records, etc.,” Blank began. “We’ve had six years where our record has not been what we want it to be, as you know. There’s been reasons for it, but the reasons are the reasons, and we have to deal with those reasons and make sure that we eliminate them, and I think we’ve done some of that, essentially.”
He referenced the drafting of quarterback Michael Penix Jr. weeks after signing Cousins, a maneuver to try to ensure that the team does not have to search for a franchise quarterback after Cousins’ run is complete. (Blank said of Cousins, soon to be 36, that “we hope and pray he’s got three to four great years in front of him, maybe more than that. Who knows?”)
Maybe this will be the elixir that Blank, who turns 82 in September, has sought. Certainly his leadership of late has not produced the desired results. And, really, the entirety of his tenure, when compared with the rest of the league, has not been nothing, but certainly not the best, either.
In Blank’s 22 seasons, the Falcons have made the playoffs eight times. Eleven teams have qualified more frequently. The Falcons have finished first in the NFC South four times. Eighteen of the NFL’s 32 franchises have won or tied for their divisions more times than that. Thirteen different teams have won the Super Bowl during Blank’s stewardship of the Falcons.
The reasons are the reasons. Of the 22 Super Bowl titles during Blank’s time as Falcons owner, 16 were won by quarterbacks either in the Pro Football Hall of Fame (Peyton Manning) or who, at the least, have made compelling cases for induction when their time arrives (Tom Brady, Aaron Rodgers, Eli Manning, Ben Roethlisberger, Drew Brees and Patrick Mahomes).
It explains Blank’s willingness to have a franchise quarterback both in the lineup and warming up in the bullpen. He spoke of the importance of a succession plan and how the personnel department and coaching staff didn’t initially plan to take a quarterback with the No. 8 pick but did when Penix was available.
“That’s one thing, as an owner, you’ve got to think about – not just about today and tomorrow, but really beyond tomorrow,” he said.
But it also underscores the opportunity that the Falcons missed to bring home a Super Bowl trophy in Ryan’s career, which itself will merit consideration for Canton.
And this doesn’t refer only to the nightmare of Super Bowl 51, but throughout his 14-year term as the team’s quarterback. The Falcons made the playoffs six times during that span. Had the club been better about planning for today, tomorrow and beyond tomorrow during Ryan’s run – whether it was the draft, free agency and managing the roster and salary cap – perhaps the albatross that has been snugly wrapped around the club’s neck for almost 60 years would have been lifted.
It is not Blank’s burden to bear solely. (He did get that A-minus!) But it is his team, one that would do well to repay a fan base that in an act of supreme faith has purchased the entire season-ticket allotment for Mercedes-Benz Stadium.
In the wilting heat of July, hope blooms again.
Raheem Morris, Blank’s seventh full-time head coach, heads a revamped coaching staff. Blank has his franchise quarterback, albeit one who is turning 36 in August and coming back from a ruptured Achilles tendon. His club has the benefit of being in a division that again appears fairly tame. Blank described himself as “more optimistic than I’ve been in several years,” although he stopped short of saying that he expected his team to make the playoffs, instead calling it his hope.
“I feel good about where we are,” he said. “I look back on the period of 23 years that I am incredibly proud of the amount of the winning that we’ve done over that period of time. The last six years have not been up to my standards and up to the standards of the building and our fans.”
No disagreement here or anywhere.
Credit: Miguel Martinez
Credit: Miguel Martinez
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