Falcons Hire Mike Nolan to Lead Defense

Nolan spent the last two seasons as Miami’s defensive coordinator. Prior to that, he served four years as the 49ers head coach, following in the footsteps of his father.

In all, Nolan has been an NFL coordinator for 14 years. He takes over in Atlanta for Brian VanGorder, who returned to the college ranks to take the same position at Auburn.

The Falcons will have two new coordinators next season. Dirk Koetter was hired Sunday to run the offense after Mike Mularkey left to become head coach of the Jacksonville Jaguars.

In another move toward revamping the staff for 2012, head coach Mike Smith announced that offensive line coach Paul Boudreau has been let go. The Falcons line struggled this season, most notably in an ugly 24-2 loss to the New York Giants in the opening round of the playoffs — a game in which Atlanta twice failed to convert on fourth-down quarterback sneaks by Matt Ryan.

The hiring of Nolan figures to be met with more enthusiasm in Atlanta than Smith bringing in Koetter to run an offense that has plenty of weapons but largely failed to meet expectations. Koetter had been the offensive coordinator in Jacksonville, which finished last in total offense and in yards passing.

Nolan’s numbers are much more impressive. The Dolphins allowed the sixth-fewest points in the NFL (19.6 per game), ranked third in rushing yards (95.6) and tied for 10th with 41 sacks. The biggest question is how to mesh Nolan’s preference for the 3-4 alignment with personnel that is built around Smith favoring the 4-3.

“Mike Nolan is an established coordinator in this league,” Smith said in a statement. “Mike has a history of developing physically intimidating defensive units, and we are fortunate to have him join our staff.”

The Falcons haven’t ranked among the top 10 in yards allowed since 1998, their only season.

The 52-year-old Nolan didn’t have much success as a head coach, going 18-37 with the 49ers — a stint that was perhaps most noteworthy for his desire to wear a suit on the sideline in honor of his father, former 49ers and New Orleans Saints coach Dick Nolan. The league initially resisted, citing its apparel contracts, but eventually worked out a new arrangement.

Nolan is regarded as one of the NFL’s top defensive minds. He was only 34 when tapped by former Falcons coach Dan Reeves to take over as the Giants defensive coordinator in 1993. He’s also served as a coordinator with Washington, the New York Jets, Baltimore and Denver.

In Baltimore, Nolan served on the same staff with Smith.

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Falcons Hire Koetter From Jags to Head Offense

The Falcons announced the hire on Sunday. ESPN first reported the move.

Mularkey, whose Falcons offense was shut out in a 24-2 playoff loss to the New York Giants last week, was introduced as Jacksonville’s coach on Wednesday. He hired former Falcons quarterbacks coach Bob Bratkowski to be his offensive coordinator.

The Falcons hired Koetter despite the Jaguars ranking last in the league in total offense and yards passing in 2011. Koetter’s offense ranked 29th with its average of 15.2 points per game.

Koetter was hired as Jacksonville’s offensive coordinator in 2007. He worked with Falcons coach Mike Smith for one year. Smith was the Jaguars’ defensive coordinator before he became Atlanta’s head coach in 2008.

Smith said Koetter will bring “a fresh set of ideas to our offense.”

“He is bright, he understands the intricacies of the vertical passing game, but he also wants to be able to run the football which is very important in the NFL,” Smith said. “I look forward to working with Dirk and have tremendous confidence that he will be a great addition to our team and our coaching staff.”

Smith has emphasized a run-first philosophy with Atlanta.

After the Jaguars fired Jack Del Rio this season, interim coach Mel Tucker assigned Koetter the additional role of quarterbacks coach for the final five games of the season.

Jacksonville rookie quarterback Blaine Gabbert and Luke McCown combined for 12 touchdown passes and 15 interceptions. The Jaguars’ strength was their running game. Maurice Jones-Drew led the NFL with 1,606 yards rushing.

The Falcons lost both coordinators after the season. The team is still looking to replace defensive coordinator Brian VanGorder, who moved back to the college ranks to head Auburn’s defense.

Koetter, 52, was a combined 66-44 as the head coach at Boise State (1998 to 2000) and Arizona State (2001-06).

With Atlanta, Koetter inherits an offense blessed with established starters such as quarterback Matt Ryan, running back Michael Turner, tight end Tony Gonzalez and receivers Roddy White and Julio Jones. With the exception of Jones, who was a breakout rookie in 2011, all those playmakers, plus fullback Ovie Mughelli, have been Pro Bowl selections.

Despite the wealth of talent, the offense was a disappointment as the team suffered its third straight playoff loss in its four years with Smith.

As part of their 2011 draft-day trade with Cleveland to move up in the first round and make Jones the No. 6 overall pick, the Falcons sent the Browns their 2012 first- and fourth-round picks.

That trade leaves the Falcons fewer draft picks this year to address problem areas on the offense, including on the offensive line.

A phone message was left seeking comment from Koetter.

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Giants Rout Falcons 24-2, Eager to Play Packers

The New York Giants are coming to Lambeau Field next weekend believing they have a good shot at knocking off the defending champions.

If the Packers (15-1) have any doubts, all they have to do is look at what Eli Manning and the Giants did to the Atlanta Falcons on Sunday in a dominating 24-2 win in the NFC wild-card game. And if that doesn’t convince them, maybe they should remember their game against the Giants on Dec. 4.

Aaron Rodgers had to lead a late drive to set up a last-second field goal in a 38-35 win at MetLife Stadium.

If that game was tough, this will be tougher.

The Giants (10-7) have changed. There’s more to Tom Coughlin’s team than Manning and his talented pool of receivers. New York has rediscovered its defense and found its running game. This is once again a complete team, much like the team that came into Green Bay in early 2008 and captured the NFC Conference title with an overtime victory on a brutally cold evening.

“We are going to out there and give all our effort and we are going to walk away with a win,” All Pro defensive end Jason Pierre Paul said after the Giants won their third straight game and fourth in five since the loss to the Pack.

The win over the Falcons (10-7) was the Giants’ best game of the season in terms of a total team effort. New York gained 442 yards, held Atlanta to 247 and controlled the clock for more than 34 minutes. The only mistake was giving up a second-quarter safety when the line protection broke down and Manning was called for intentional grounding in the end zone.

Two-time Pro Bowl guard Chris Snee is excited about the way the Giants are playing.

“We’re playing very good and I’m just glad offensively we performed better in the second half,” Snee said. “We’re still searching for that full game. Maybe it’s too tough to achieve but we’re going to strive for it.”

Manning and the defense, which had two sacks, came close to achieving it Sunday in sending Matt Ryan and the Falcons to their third straight playoff loss under coach Mike Smith.

Manning ignited a listless offense with a 14-yard second-quarter scramble, a drive that he capped with a 4-yard touchdown pass to Hakeem Nicks. The two also hooked up on a game-breaking 72-yard catch and run in the third quarter. The 31-year-old quarterback put away the inept Falcons with a 27-yard TD throw to Mario Manningham in the fourth quarter.

Now it’s back to Green Bay. New York went there last season with a playoff berth on the line and was blown out. The Giants’ last postseason trip to Lambeau Field was a 23-20 overtime victory for the NFC championship two weeks before they upset the Patriots in the Super Bowl.

“Cold, I remember that. I remember coach Coughlin’s face. I remember (tackle) David Diehl sweating and it froze on his hair and he had icicles on his hair,” defensive end Justin Tuck said. “And I remember us winning.

“Hopefully, we can go back there and do it again.”

The tempo in the first playoff game at MetLife Stadium was set by New York’s defense, which never allowed Atlanta to get going, and by the league’s lowest-ranked rushing game, which ran for a season-high 172 yards, 92 by Brandon Jacobs and 63 by Ahmad Bradshaw. The Giants averaged 5.5 yards a carry, 2 yards more than in the regular season.

For all of Jacobs’ and Bradshaw’s success, it was Manning’s escape and dash on third down in the second period that got the Giants rolling. Jacobs soon broke a 34-yard run, and Manning hit Nicks on a post pattern to put the Giants up 7-2.

“I don’t think anyone is game-planning for me to run the ball,” Manning said, “but obviously there were a couple of situations where you have to do it. I am not scared of running to get a few yards.”

The Giants never really had to look back as the Falcons were embarrassed in the postseason for the second straight year. As the conference’s top seed last season, they were stunned by Green Bay 48-21 in the NFC semifinal.

“We can’t lose like this in the playoffs,” defensive end John Abraham said. “We should have been able to do something different. We played well in the beginning, but it kind of got away from us in the end.”

The Falcons had chances but they failed to convert on two fourth-down sneaks by Ryan inside the Giants 25. Michael Turner, supposedly the most effective runner on the field, also failed on a third-and-inches late in the third period.

“We just came up short,” said Ryan, who completed 24 of 41 for 199 yards. “In a playoff game against a very good football team, you have to make those plays and we didn’t make them.”

The Giants hope to make them next weekend in Wisconsin.

“We know they are a good team,” said Manning, who completed 23 of 32 for 277 yards. “We played them tough here, did some good things here, we scored some points. We know offensively we are going to have to play strong, score some points.”

Notes: It was the first time a team scored exactly two points in an NFL postseason game. … The Giants’ most recent home playoff victory was a 41-0 rout of Minnesota for the 2000 NFC title. … Atlanta’s last playoff win was in 2005 over St. Louis when Michael Vick still was the Falcons’ quarterback. … There were no turnovers in the game and the Giants have not had a turnover in their last two games. … Giants CB Aaron Ross and RB D.J. Ware left with concussions. … Falcons tight end Tony Gonzalez is 0-5 in playoff games in his 15-year career.

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