Jeff Ulbrich’s early success in Atlanta is doing exactly what strong coordinator play tends to do: it’s creating head coaching noise. The Falcons have quietly built one of the league’s most imposing defenses under Ulbrich, and that kind of run doesn’t stay under the radar for long.
Even without Jalon Walker or James Pearce Jr., Atlanta is leading the NFL in pressures and owns the league’s best run defense. Ulbrich has gotten plenty out of a depleted unit, and that’s why his name is already surfacing in head coaching conversations. ESPN’s Dan Graziano included him among the coordinators worth watching this offseason, pointing to both the Falcons’ fast start and Ulbrich’s brief run as the New York Jets’ interim head coach in 2024.
"Atlanta is a fun story in the early going, and defensive coordinator Jeff Ulbrich is getting love around the league for the job he's doing with a unit that's short-handed up front," Graziano wrote. "He finished the 2024 season as the Jets' interim head coach. That obviously didn't go well, but Ulbrich is extremely well-liked and respected around the league and could get looks if the Falcons have a big season."
Whether Ulbrich would actually leave Atlanta is another matter, especially after the death of his wife. Still, in the NFL, coaching opportunities can disappear quickly, and a strong run like this can open doors that don’t come around often.
If Ulbrich does move on, the Falcons would have to think seriously about their next defensive play caller. That could put Dan Quinn back in the conversation.
Quinn is now the head coach of the Washington Commanders, but his job security looks shaky after a rough stretch that included a badly managed clock situation in the tie with the New York Giants. Washington is 1-3-1 and sitting last in the NFC East, and after a 12-5 season and NFC Championship appearance in his first year, the drop-off has been severe. Last season’s 5-12 finish makes that earlier success look more like an outlier than a foundation.
As a head coach, Quinn has plenty of questions attached to him. As a defensive mind, though, he still carries weight. He helped build the Legion of Boom and later oversaw a Dallas Cowboys defense that had struggled after his departure.
The Falcons also have a built-in reason to care about him beyond scheme fit. Quinn spent five seasons with Ulbrich from 2015 through 2020, and both coaches work from a similar defensive tree built around physical play and a four-man rush. Quinn also coached Matt Ryan during his MVP season in 2016, when Atlanta reached the Super Bowl.
That kind of familiarity matters to this regime, which has shown a preference for coaches who already share a vision or have existing ties to the organization. A former head coach returning to a coordinator role might feel unusual, but it has worked elsewhere. Vance Joseph did it with the Denver Broncos, and the upside is obvious: if a coach has already had the head job, there’s less concern about him leaving for another one.
The Falcons would prefer to keep Ulbrich, but if he gets serious head coaching interest, Atlanta would have a legitimate fallback. And if Quinn’s time in Washington comes to an end, the reunion would at least make football sense for both sides.
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Kendal Daniels Is Making One Falcons Linebacker Decision Much Easier
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The more he plays, the easier it becomes to imagine him as part of the long-term answer at linebacker, especially with Divine Deablo set to hit free agency after the 2025 season. Daniels rise does not settle the entire conversation yet, but it does give the Falcons something valuable: a young defender whose role seems to be expanding at exactly the right time. [Read more 🡒]