The Atlanta Falcons are looking to go in a different direction following their dismissal of head coach Arthur Smith. With Atlanta about to have a busy offseason, team general manager Terry Fontenot is expected to have his plate full as he tries to help the Falcons get ready for the 2024 campaign. He's seemingly already started getting down to work, which explains why he was absent during the end-of-season press conference by the team, as revealed by franchise owner Arthur Blank and CEO Rich McKay (h/t 92.9 The Game).

“One aspect of the day’s events that garnered much attention was the noticeable absence of GM Terry Fontenot from the Falcons' end-of-season media session. Arthur Blank and McKay held a joint press conference but decided Fontenot was best served to tackle other tasks for the organization.”

Blank also said that the absence of Fontenot is a non-issue.

“Don't read anything into him not being here,” Blank stated (h/t Tori McElhaney of FOX 5 Atlanta).

In any case, the Falcons have an intriguing offseason. Firing Smith is just one move, and there should be more actions to be taken by Atlanta if it is to become a serious playoff contender in 2024. The Falcons parted ways with Smith after Atlanta finished with just a 7-10 record in the 2023 campaign — the same record the team had in each of the first two seasons under Smith. Atlanta, which has not made the playoffs since 2018. The Falcons also have not finished better than third in the NFC South division during the span of Smith's tenure as the team's head coach.