It appears Rich McKay won the battle versus Bill Belichick.
And then Arthur Blank took care of McKay to avoid any potential issues that could arise in the future.
McKay, the team’s CEO, is exiting the team’s day-to-day football operations upon the hiring of new coach Raheem Morris, whom owner Arthur Blank chose over Belichick.
He will now have more duties across Blank’s AMB Sports & Entertainment venture, including the addition of overseeing Blank’s MLS team in Atlanta United.
However, the head coach and general manager Terry Fontenot will not report to him as they previously had. Morris and Fontenot will instead report directly to Blank.
This move seemingly protects McKay from being seen as a threat to any incoming coach.
“It is hard to quantify the positive things Rich has done to impact our organization over the last 21 years, laying a strong foundation for our football team and getting Mercedes-Benz Stadium built and functioning as one of the best in the world, chief among them,” Blank said in a statement. “While he’ll no longer be involved in day-to-day football operations, Rich’s role will broaden in our organization, and I’ll continue to trust him with some of the most important work we’re engaged in across the Blank Family of Businesses.”
When initial reports pegged Belichick as the Falcons’ top choice, rumors emerged that he may have an issue with McKay’s role with the franchise.
Since the general manager and coach had to report to McKay, that meant Belichick, arguably the greatest coach ever, would be reporting directly to a CEO with limited success.
Yahoo reported that it became clear in the meetings with Belichick that he wanted “the full scope of football operations, personnel and coaching should be under his decision-making umbrella.”
McKay is also the chairman of the league’s competition committee, which had its problems with Belichick’s Patriots over the years.
It’s certainly possible other coaches could have an issue with McKay’s role, and it seems Blank recognized this issue and decided to shield McKay.
McKay is now no longer tied to the football team’s on-field success and failures, and there have been plenty of the latter throughout the franchise’s history, and still has a strong position under Blank.
With the Falcons passing on Belichick, sportsbooks now overwhelmingly project he will not be coaching this upcoming season.
The Commanders and Seahawks are the remaining vacancies, and he has not been linked to either job.
