The Atlanta Falcons may have had one of their worst games in a long time in Week 3 against the Carolina Panthers, where they weren't able to score any points. In those types of situations, some change has to happen, and the following day, the Falcons fired wide receiver coach Ike Hilliard.
A few days later, head coach Raheem Morris explained the decision to fire Hilliard and noted that it wasn't easy to do so.
“Performance based, just like everything in this business. … Tough decision. People business. Hard for me. Hard for the organization. Hard on Ike, his family,” Morris said during media availability.
The Falcons' wide receivers had career seasons last year, and that includes Drake London, Darnell Mooney, and Ray-Ray McCloud III. So far this season, none of the wide receivers have scored a touchdown, and in the game against the Panthers, it didn't seem like the chemistry was the best with Michael Penix Jr. at times.
With the Falcons staring at a 1-2 record and having the talent on the team to win games, it's obvious that the sense of urgency is there for them to improve immediately. They showed that after Week 1 when they benched Younghoe Koo after he missed a game-tying field goal against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
Falcons making changes after 30-0 loss to Panthers
Outside of firing Hilliard, offensive coordinator Zac Robinson will be moving from the booth to the field to call plays. During the early part of the Panthers' game, they were having issues with getting in the calls to Penix, which could be attributed to their slow start, but even when things got fixed, the Falcons still struggled. The hope is that with Robinson coming down to the field, it will help Penix and the offense get into a better flow.
So far, the Falcons' offense has been up and down, and it has left a lot of people with questions about what the problem could be when looking at the talent they have. Penix has missed some throws so far, and it could be that he is still building chemistry with the receivers. That was just his sixth start in the league as well, and you could say that he's still a rookie in some way.
Nonetheless, the Falcons are going to have to get better sooner rather than later, and it starts in Week 4 against the Washington Commanders.
