Doctor Kildare Posted January 30 Share Posted January 30 (edited) via Ashton Edmunds of the Falcon official site LAS VEGAS – During a cold and rainy Monday morning at UNLV's Fertitta Football Complex, newly hired Falcons defensive coordinator Ryan Nielsen stood on the sidelines next to head coach Arthur Smith and offensive coordinator Dave Ragone watching the first East-West Shrine Bowl practice take place. Nielsen joined the Falcons coaching staff on Friday having previously coached with the New Orleans Saints for several years in various positions. The Los Angeles native shares a lot of commonalities with other Falcons coaches and personnel, which played a vital role in this acquisition. In 2016, Nielsen served as defensive line coach and run game coordinator at North Carolina State University, where Falcons current offensive line coach Dwayne Ledford also served as the offensive line coach for the Wolfpack during that time. Following his stint with N.C. State, Nielsen joined the New Orleans Saints as defensive line coach in 2017, where Falcons general Manager Terry Fontenot served as the director of pro scouting during that period. When asked about why he landed on Ryan Nielsen as defensive coordinator, Arthur Smith said "a lot of it is about fit and what we're looking for." "Ryan is a guy I have a tremendous amount of respect for," Smith said on Monday. "I've gotten to know him over the last couple of years, [and] we have a lot of familiarity. Dwayne Ledford worked with him at N.C. State, [football analyst] Shawn Flaherty has, Terry has in New Orleans so we got a good feel for who he is day-to-day as a person. And then professionally, he's been a pretty good adversary. I've got a lot of respect and I love the plan he has and the way we want to implement things, continue to develop our own guys and what we're going to do this offseason, so it was a really right fit for us and he's a heck of a coach." As a defensive line coach, Nielsen was a key contributor in the development of Saints defensive end Cameron Jordan and Bengals defensive end Trey Hendrickson, who were both previously selected to play to the Pro Bowl within the last two years. Nielsen has demonstrated the ability to develop elite level players on the defensive front. "Ryan is a big picture guy," Smith said. "I was impressed. Everybody's got great ideas and plans, but how are you going to implement that, and I really liked his plan as we continue to build this staff. We're excited about it. Excited about the future and what we're building." The Falcons currently have vacancies at defensive line coach, outside linebackers coach and secondary coach. And Smith mentioned that he's values the input from his coaching staff when thinking about backfilling these positions. "Ultimately, I have to feel good about anybody that's on our staff," Smith said. "Offense, defense, special teams. It's the Atlanta Falcons. It's our staff, so I'll take suggestions but at the end of the day, I'll make that call." Edited January 30 by Doctor Kildare Lornoth, midas_whale, Tim Mazetti and 9 others 7 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gazoo Posted January 30 Share Posted January 30 11 minutes ago, Doctor Kildare said: When asked about why he landed on Ryan Nielsen as defensive coordinator, Arthur Smith said "a lot of it is about fit and what we're looking for." But wait, I read on TATF that we had to take him since no one else wanted to come here. These things can’t both be true, I wonder which one it is 😬 itzthechase, Knight of God, TheRisen999 and 7 others 2 2 6 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CADirtyBird Posted January 30 Share Posted January 30 5 minutes ago, gazoo said: But wait, I read on TATF that we had to take him since no one else wanted to come here. These things can’t both be true, I wonder which one it is 😬 C'mon man you know the armchair GM's of TATF are never wrong. ItsJustMe, Matty ICE, EastCoastFalcon902 and 8 others 11 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jesus Posted January 31 Share Posted January 31 Sweep the saints. TheRisen999, PokerSteve, Emmitt and 1 other 1 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kiwifalcon Posted January 31 Share Posted January 31 He’s just another name on the whiteboard until he’s not. Dean Pees one of the better coaches of defense in the last 2 decades was also a coach here.It didn’t end well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mister pudding Posted January 31 Share Posted January 31 I like that there is familiarity. Seeing somebody work vs. a resume and an interview are two different animals. I feel good about this hire PokerSteve, gazoo, Vandy and 1 other 3 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tbhawksfan Posted January 31 Share Posted January 31 If there is one thing we absolutely need, it's someone that can coach up DL Only thing that worries me is that we recently had a guy in here who was supposedly a DL guy and his D was terrible..... I like the hirefor now, but clearly another rookie coach at DC Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
_bc_ Posted January 31 Share Posted January 31 13 hours ago, kiwifalcon said: He’s just another name on the whiteboard until he’s not. Dean Pees one of the better coaches of defense in the last 2 decades was also a coach here.It didn’t end well. i think the DP era was fantastic ... and it ended perfectly for the falcons he brought tons of wisdom and experience to the new staff and made AS's transition much smoother he could have stroked his ego and stayed another year, stocked the team with in a bunch of "his" FAs and draft picks, finished 2023 as a top 15 unit and gone out looking like a genius ... but instead, he left peacefully and handed down all that cap money and 1 year FA contracts for Nielsen to create his own defense DP has won a place in my favorite all-time coaches HOF ... class act all the way Ghosts of Glanville, rounz, MarkMc44 and 10 others 10 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lornoth Posted January 31 Share Posted January 31 I like that he's not going to be a HC candidate immediately. Having some consistency for a while will be nice. I also like that AS is giving Nielsen a fair bit of say in his position coaches. Obviously the HC is the boss but with Smith running the offense I like the idea of Nielsen having his own guys on defense. Chitown2ATL_Falcon and gazoo 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gazoo Posted January 31 Share Posted January 31 18 minutes ago, Lornoth said: I like that he's not going to be a HC candidate immediately. Having some consistency for a while will be nice. Amen Loronth, I was thinking same. I knew Pees was just a temporary bandaid, but when we brought Nielson on I was thinking we might finally have some consistency in our coaching staff and coordinators. Constant turnover and subpar coordinators has been a persistent issue here. I’m hoping we have some stability now.. Chitown2ATL_Falcon 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Falcons_Frenzy Posted January 31 Share Posted January 31 Saw the Aints shirt and hat and 🤮 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FalconFanSince1969 Posted January 31 Share Posted January 31 16 hours ago, gazoo said: But wait, I read on TATF that we had to take him since no one else wanted to come here. These things can’t both be true, I wonder which one it is 😬 Because no coach has ever refused the falcons before lmao. deester11 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
deester11 Posted January 31 Share Posted January 31 18 hours ago, CADirtyBird said: C'mon man you know the armchair GM's of TATF are never wrong. At least you acknowledge that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wjcorner Posted January 31 Share Posted January 31 17 hours ago, kiwifalcon said: He’s just another name on the whiteboard until he’s not. Dean Pees one of the better coaches of defense in the last 2 decades was also a coach here.It didn’t end well. his exit interview made a good point. last 8 games of his tenure here, he had a defense that would've been ranked top 10. and I feel like the eyeball test shows it wasn't fluke or luck too. towards the end, we looked like a competenet defense. Chitown2ATL_Falcon 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
red falcon Posted January 31 Share Posted January 31 27 minutes ago, Wjcorner said: his exit interview made a good point. last 8 games of his tenure here, he had a defense that would've been ranked top 10. and I feel like the eyeball test shows it wasn't fluke or luck too. towards the end, we looked like a competenet defense. True last 3 gms we were top 3 in time possession though offensively im sure that factors in a lot. https://www.teamrankings.com/nfl/stat/average-time-of-possession-net-of-ot Chitown2ATL_Falcon 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Herr Doktor Posted January 31 Share Posted January 31 19 hours ago, Doctor Kildare said: "Ryan is a big picture guy," Smith said. "I was impressed. Everybody's got great ideas and plans, but how are you going to implement that, and I really liked his plan as we continue to build this staff. We're excited about it. Excited about the future and what we're building." And this is the selling point. He had a plan, they were impressed with that plan, and hired him with urgency. So, my guess is that fact that Neilsen likes a core of our players. Will coach them up, and inserted what he wants. A plan baby. I like it. Chitown2ATL_Falcon and Mr.11 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wjcorner Posted January 31 Share Posted January 31 25 minutes ago, red falcon said: True last 3 gms we were top 3 in time possession though offensively im sure that factors in a lot. https://www.teamrankings.com/nfl/stat/average-time-of-possession-net-of-ot for sure. but it's a ying/yang type of deal, Eagles hung 31 on the "best defense" in the NFL statistically because the offense couldn't string a drive together red falcon 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PokerSteve Posted January 31 Share Posted January 31 18 hours ago, Mister pudding said: I like that there is familiarity. Seeing somebody work vs. a resume and an interview are two different animals. I feel good about this hire Agree. Smith has stood across the field from Nielsen and found his defense a challenge to deal with. The last time a Falcon HC hired a coordinator because he greatly respected him as an adversary was one Kyle Shanahan. That worked out pretty decent. The icing on the cake to me is not only how pleased he is to get Nielsen, but Smith trying in vain to control himself to keep from sounding too giddy. "We're excited about it. Excited about the future and what we're building." We'll see if the Nielsen hire has anything like the same impact of Shanahan's. I'm thinking there's a very, very good chance it will. Picture for a moment the Atlanta Falcons completely owning the New Orleans Stains for the next decade. And using stolen Stain brains and coaching talent to administer the punishment. 😆 Mr.11, Chitown2ATL_Falcon and Mister pudding 2 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CADirtyBird Posted January 31 Share Posted January 31 2 hours ago, deester11 said: At least you acknowledge that. Who are you and when have I ever been an armchair GM? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kiwifalcon Posted January 31 Share Posted January 31 3 hours ago, Wjcorner said: his exit interview made a good point. last 8 games of his tenure here, he had a defense that would've been ranked top 10. and I feel like the eyeball test shows it wasn't fluke or luck too. towards the end, we looked like a competenet defense. I thought we were always short of talent and I’m not sure what the overall plan was.Competent isn’t getting it done our run and pass defense went to **** mid season. Competent I thought he walked before he was asked to leave. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
deester11 Posted January 31 Share Posted January 31 1 hour ago, CADirtyBird said: Who are you and when have I ever been an armchair GM? Lmao...unless you or I or anyone else is in the FO, that's what we are. I consider myself that and don't care if it's liked or not. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
midas_whale Posted January 31 Share Posted January 31 2 hours ago, deester11 said: Lmao...unless you or I or anyone else is in the FO, that's what we are. I consider myself that and don't care if it's liked or not. Watch it now. I am a couch GM. PokerSteve and deester11 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
papachaz Posted February 1 Share Posted February 1 8 hours ago, Lornoth said: I like that he's not going to be a HC candidate immediately. Having some consistency for a while will be nice. I also like that AS is giving Nielsen a fair bit of say in his position coaches. Obviously the HC is the boss but with Smith running the offense I like the idea of Nielsen having his own guys on defense. well, maybe this is who TF wanted to hire as his HC, but he was stuck with art (not his guy) and this is his way to have him onboard already when arts 3 year contract runs out next year and isn't renewed Lornoth and PokerSteve 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Malachore Posted February 1 Share Posted February 1 On 1/30/2023 at 7:16 PM, Jesus said: Sweep the saints. You spelled **** wrong. PokerSteve, midas_whale, papachaz and 1 other 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brookings Posted February 1 Share Posted February 1 He should be 👌. He just needs to take a long hot shower to wash that NO stench off. It worked for TF! Once the NO Stink is gone he should be good! Killing Floor, PokerSteve and Chitown2ATL_Falcon 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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