ESPN Report: Sad News” Falcons Head Coach Says .A J. Terrell CB He Is The Worse Player That He Hate

ATLANTA — Less than a week after hiring their head coach, the Atlanta Falcons finalized their coordinators — with a heavy Los Angeles Rams flair.

The Falcons announced former Rams assistant head coach Jimmy Lake as their defensive coordinator Monday, joining new offensive coordinator Zac Robinson, who also came over from the Rams, where he was quarterbacks coach and passing game coordinator.

They’ll reunite with new Falcons head coach Raheem Morris, who was hired from the Rams last week after serving as the team’s defensive coordinator since 2021.

Lake was the head coach at the University of Washington from 2020 to ’21 after being in various assistant roles for six seasons prior to that, including as defensive coordinator for two seasons in 2018-19.

Lake has prior NFL experience with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Detroit Lions, coaching the defensive backs. Lake and Morris worked together in Tampa Bay.

The Falcons also officially announced the retention of special teams coordinator Marquice Williams on Monday.

Sources told ESPN the team also plans on retaining running backs coach Michael Pitre and offensive line coach Dwayne Ledford from the previous staff.

ANDY REID WAS at a career crossroads in the early days of 2013. He had just finished the most difficult year of his career, beginning with the death of his son Garrett — he died of an accidental overdose, according to the Northampton County, Pennsylvania, coroner — during training camp and finishing with the Eagles at 4-12, the worst record of his career.

His 14-year tenure as head coach of the Philadelphia Eagles ended in his firing.

Some friends told Reid, then 54, that it might do him some good to step away from football for a year to relax and refresh.

Reid said he considered the idea but never seriously. He would tell them unfailingly he was more worried about himself if he didn’t have the seven-day-per-week structure that coaching provided.

That was 11 years ago.

The Kansas City Chiefs job he took only days after being fired by the Eagles has turned out better than he dared dream. Under his guidance, the Chiefs won a pair of Super Bowls and could get a third on Sunday when they face the San Francisco 49ers at Allegiant Stadium (6:30 p.m. ET, CBS).

Reid is now approaching another crossroads. His 25th season as an NFL head coach will be over after Super Bowl LVIII, and he turns 66 next month.

The Chiefs, unlike the Eagles 11 years ago, are certainly comfortable with Reid coaching next season and into the foreseeable future. How Reid feels about it is uncertain. He recently said he hadn’t given the matter any thought.

The question at the center of it: Has enough changed in those 11 years that Reid would be comfortable leaving behind coaching and the chance to win more Super Bowl championships with Patrick Mahomes at quarterback?

Those closest to Reid would be surprised.

“He’s in a good place, not just with Pat but with his coaching staff and with the personnel staff,” Kansas City general manager Brett Veach said. “This is the setup he’s always wanted. I think he has a lot of football coaching ahead of him, and I can see him coaching for the foreseeable future here. I think he’s got a good chunk of time left.”