Who should go first: Dirk Koetter or Dan Quinn?

Here we are. Just 4 games into the season and already thinking about a top 5 draft pick and a complete overhaul of the entire front office and coaching staff, and potentially the football roster. The cries to “cut Matt Ryan” or “trade Julio Jones” are lighting up social media in the wake of the first 0-4 start since the last time Ricky Martin was relevant.

The most consistent cry, bar none, is the desire to fire head coach Dan Quinn. While it seems a near certainty at this point, it did get me thinking: while DQ is definitely the architect of this dumpster fire on a roller coaster with a broken track, you could argue that Dirk Koetter has been a key catalyst in this losing streak. If Arthur Blank wanted to send a message and hold on firing DQ, he could mandate that Koetter go for this sluggish offense.

So, let’s take a look at these two men and discuss why each should go.

Dan Quinn

This one is pretty straight forward and I highly doubt fans are going to miss Dan when he is eventually jettisoned from Flowery Branch, at least not right away. Ultimately, the failures of the entire team falls on the head coach. Whether it’s been his suspect and sometimes horrid game management, or the epic collapse in the Super Bowl, his actual performance as a head coach has often times been dismal, and that may be a generous interpretation.

When you pile on facts like the team letting Matt LeFleur go after 2016, or the hiring of Dirk Koetter or retaining Vic Beasley on his expensive 5th year option, you find you have compelling reasons to make the move and get things rolling toward a new era of Falcons football.

Ultimately, the guy at the top has to own this. All of it. The offense. The defense. Special Teams. It falls on him. This disastrous start to the season is on his shoulders.

Dirk Koetter

Welcome to the alternative. For everything that Dan Quinn has done poorly, Dirk seems to have doubled down on the terrible with an offensive roster that features Matt Ryan, Julio Jones, Calvin Ridley and Todd Gurley. He’s made this unit look pedestrian and sometimes completely inept, and while you can’t hold the players blameless for that, Koetter’s handling of this side of the ball has been inexcusable.

This offense is so predictable you have people at home, watching through their hands out of fear and disgust, guessing the play calls with near 100% accuracy. The Falcons are near the top of the league in run plays in 2nd and long. They’re near the bottom of the league in play calls that feature pre-snap motion. Dirk Koetter hasn’t coached a successful rushing attack in over a decade. He is literally setting all the wrong records.

More importantly, this offense is just not living up to its potential. The end of the Bears game was a master class in how NOT to burn down the clock. At one point, they had a drive that burned down just 11 seconds. ELEVEN SECONDS. The play clock is 40 seconds. How is someone able to do that? Well, Dirk found a way, and then he found a way to get this team to just 16 points against the Green Bay defense.

Let me summarize it like this: who would you rather have as OC right now, Dirk Koetter or Steve Sarkisian? The fact that you would even pause to think about it tells you all you need to know.

So tell us, who should go first?

Your vote