The Falcons officially have a new head coach.
The team announced the hiring of Kevin Stefanski on Saturday night. The Falcons fired Raheem Morris after back-to-back 8-9 seasons and Stefanski became available after being fired by the Browns. He took Cleveland to the playoffs twice and won coach of the year twice in his first four seasons, but eight wins in the last two seasons led to the end of his tenure.
“We’re thrilled to land a lead-by-example leader in Kevin Stefanski who brings a clear vision for his staff, our team and a closely aligned focus on building this team on fundamentals, toughness and active collaboration with every area of the football operation,” Falcons president of football Matt Ryan said in a statement. “Coach Stefanski is a team-first leader who puts a premium on accountability for everyone and a player-driven culture. His experience in Cleveland and Minnesota has given him a great understanding of the importance of working in sync with scouting, personnel and the rest of the football staff to maximize talent across the roster and in doing everything possible to put our players in the best position to succeed. Kevin’s style of leadership, combined with the staff and infrastructure in place here in Atlanta, gives us confidence in our shared vision for the team and we are excited to have him as the leader of our football team.”
The Falcons finished in a three-way tie with the Panthers and Buccaneers at 8-9 during the 2025 season, but missed out on the playoffs due to tiebreaker rules. They’ll hope Stefanski has the right touch to make sure they finish free and clear of their divisional rivals in 2026 and beyond.
The Falcons have found their next head coach.
According to multiple reports, the Falcons are finalizing a deal with former Browns head coach Kevin Stefanski. Stefanski was fired by the Browns after the end of the regular season.
Stefanski was 45-56 in the regular season over six seasons as the Browns’ head coach. They reached the playoffs twice in his first four seasons, but lost their opening game both times and then went 8-26 over the last two seasons.
Poor quarterback play had a lot to do with that record and Stefanski will take over a Falcons team that’s banking on Michael Penix returning from a serious knee injury. Whether it is Penix or someone else, Stefanski will need to get better production from the position if his Falcons tenure is going to be more fruitful.
Curt Cignetti has engineered a remarkable turnaround as head coach of Indiana, with the program set to play for the CFP national championship on Monday night.
But don’t expect Cignetti to potentially do something similar in the pros.
Asked if he would consider an NFL job on Saturday, Cignetti dismissed the idea.
“I’m not an NFL guy,” Cignetti said, via Brett McMurphy of On3.com. “I made that decision a long time ago. I’ve always been a college football guy.”
Cignetti has been a coach at the college level for decades and he’s won everywhere he’s been, most notably at James Madison from 2019-2023 and now at Indiana over the last two years.
While money can talk, it doesn’t seem like Cignetti has any interest in trying to translate his success to the pros.
Could the Browns go particularly young at head coach?
It’s a possibility, as the team is interviewing Jaguars offensive coordinator Grant Udinski for the role on Saturday, the team announced.
Udinski, who just turned 30 on Jan. 12, would be the youngest head coach in modern NFL history if he were hired. Rams head coach Sean McVay currently has that distinction, as he was hired just before turning 31 in January 2017.
Udinski has been a fast riser, having joined the Vikings’ staff as assistant to the head coach in 2022, following two years with the Panthers as a coaching assistant.
He was promoted to Minnesota’s assistant QBs coach in 2023 and then added assistant offensive coordinator to his title in 2024.
The Jaguars hired him away to be their offensive coordinator under head coach Liam Coen last February. Udinski did not call plays, as Coen handled that role for Jacksonville.
Udinski is set to be the ninth person to interview with Cleveland for its head coaching vacancy in this cycle.
The Falcons are getting closer to filling their head coaching vacancy.
According to multiple reports, former Cleveland head coach Kevin Stefanski is interviewing with Atlanta for a second time on Saturday.
Stefanski is the first candidate to have a second interview with the franchise in this coaching cycle.
Via Jeremy Fowler of ESPN, Stefanski has done research on working with Jeff Ulbrich, who served as Atlanta’s defensive coordinator in 2025. Falcons owner Arthur Blank would like to keep Ulbrich in the role.
Jim Schwartz served as Stefanski’s defensive coordinator on the Browns for the last three seasons. But Schwartz is a head coaching candidate for Cleveland. The club also would like to retain him if it hires an offensive-minded head coach.
Stefanski, a two-time AP coach of the year, led the Browns to a 45-56 regular-season record with a 1-2 postseason record in six seasons with the club.
If Stefanski doesn’t land the Falcons job, he could have several other options, as he’s also interviewed with the Ravens, Raiders, Dolphins, and Titans. He also spoke with the Giants, though they are zeroed in on John Harbaugh.
