SI.com - NFL - Reeves released as Falcons' head coach - Wednesday December 10, 2003 4:30PM

Dan Reeves

Jamie Squire/Getty Images

Seven Up Head coaches with 200 wins, including playoffs
No.	Name	W	L	T
1.	Don Shula	347	173	6
2.	George Halas	324	151	31
3.	Tom Landry	270	178	6
4.	Curly Lambeau	229	134	22
5.	Paul Brown *	222	112	9
6.	Chuck Noll	209	156	1
7.	Dan Reeves	201	174	2
* -- NFL does not officially recognize 52 of Brown's wins that came in the AAFC.

ATLANTA (SI.com) -- The Atlanta Falcons on Wednesday announced that head coach Dan Reeves has been released from his contract effective immediately.

"[Tuesday], I advised Dan that we've decided to bring in a new head coach beginning in the 2004 season," Falcons owner Arthur Blank said. "Dan asked to be released from his position immediately and we agreed to do so, even though our desire was for him to stay on through the rest of the season."

"We want to begin the process of searching for a new head coach in a thorough and honest manner," said Blank. "In order to do so, and as Dan and I previously discussed, I wanted to let him know of our decision first.

"This conversation also puts the club in a position to operate in an open and honest environment during the final weeks of the season, and to proceed with our plans for the future."

Falcons defensive coordinator Wade Phillips, in his second season with the team, was named interim head coach for the remaining three games of the season. Secondary coach Emmitt Thomas will take over as defensive coordinator and Pete Mangurian will assume play-calling duties with the help of Mike Johnson.

It is anticipated that the selection of a new head coach will be announced after the end of the regular season. Among the possible candidates: former Minnesota coach Dennis Green and college coaches Bob Stoops of Oklahoma, Nick Saban of LSU, and Kirk Ferentz of Iowa.

"I want to be clear that this decision is not being made based on our performance this season -- we're looking forward, not back," Blank said. "This is purely about the future of the organization."

Reeves' job security had been a subject of speculation as the Falcons fell from the playoffs a year ago to one of the worst teams in the league after quarterback Michael Vick was hurt in the preseason.

SI.com's Don Banks

The coaching carousel that some think could produce as many as 10 or so openings this offseason cranked to life a little earlier than expected Wednesday with Dan Reeves' dismissal in Atlanta. Before it stops turning, we can expect it to touch nearly every corner of the NFL map. From Miami to Buffalo. From San Diego to Chicago. From Arizona to Oakland.

Click here for full story.

"Dan is a sweet guy, very sweet," Vick said. "He's a guy that really cares about his players. I think he went the extra mile for us, and a lot of guys are going to miss him."

Reeves, 59, is in his 23rd consecutive season as an NFL head coach, by far the longest tenure in the league, and he had one year left on his contract.

"When Arthur told me he had made the decision about the end of the year, I knew it had to come to a fullness [Wednesday]," Reeves said. "I'm an eternal optimist, so yeah, it was a surprise. But I'm also realistic enough about coaching to understand this is how it is in the NFL."

Linebacker Keith Brooking, one of Reeves' staunchest supporters, didn't blame the coach for asking to be let go now.

"You've got to respect that decision," Brooking said. "It would have been tough to come in here and give it everything, knowing your job was ending at the end of the year."

Still, the timing of the move was curious, coming just three days after the Falcons (3-10) defeated Carolina 20-14 in overtime in Vick's first start of the season.

Reeves began the season with his 199th career victory, the Falcons winning 27-13 in Dallas.

Is Reeves Hall-worthy?

With his dismissal in Atlanta on Wednesday, Dan Reeves in all likelihood has worked his final game as an NFL head coach.

While his 38-year body of work in the league as a player and coach is an eye-opening accomplishment in and of itself, his career highlights include becoming the seventh NFL coach to amass 200 wins, taking three different teams to the playoffs, and making four Super Bowl appearances as head coach of the Broncos and Falcons.

But while all six coaches ahead of Reeves on the all-time victory list are in the Hall of Fame, there could be a decent level of debate when the issue of his enshrinement in Canton surfaces. Enough at least to keep him from anything approaching slam-dunk status. Has Reeves' NFL coaching career been great, or merely very good on the strength of its impressive longjevity? Here are some key statistics that are bound to be mentioned in any Reeves' Hall of Fame discussion:

At 201-174-2 (.536), Reeves is the second losingest coach in NFL history, and he dropped those 174 games in 23 seasons, compared to Tom Landry's 178 defeats in 29 seasons as the Cowboys head coach.

Reeves has had just 12 winning seasons in 23 years, with nine losing records and two .500 finishes. Nine of his 23 teams made the playoffs.

Eight of his winning seasons, and six of his playoff berths came in his first 12 seasons of coaching, in Denver. In his past 11 seasons, with the Giants and Falcons, Reeves is just 82-90-1, with four winning seasons and three playoff trips.

Reeves' teams have had losing records in seven of his past nine seasons, and five out of seven in Atlanta. Twenty-six, or exactly half of his 52 wins with the Falcons, came in his two winning seasons in Atlanta, 1998 and 2002.

Reeves' 11 non-winning seasons in 23 years is modest ratio of success compared to some of the Hall of Fame coaches who rank above him in career victories. George Halas had six non-winning seasons in 40 years, Don Shula six in 33, Tom Landry nine in 29, and Chuck Noll eight in 23. Even Chuck Knox, who is not in the Hall but whose 193 career wins rank just behind Reeves, had just nine non-winning seasons in 22 years.

While other coaches who were 0-4 in the Super Bowl have been elected to the Hall of Fame, such as Bud Grant and Marv Levy, Reeves' 0-3 record with John Elway -- one of his era's greatest quarterbacks -- might work against him. Elway later went 2-for-2 in winning Super Bowls in Denver under head coach Mike Shanahan.

-- Don Banks, SI.com

Atlanta then lost seven in a row before Reeves finally got his 200th win at New York against the Giants on Nov. 9. Afterward, he said, "It's great. But when you've lost seven in a row, it was all about trying to get them to win No. 2."

Vick broke his right leg in the preseason, exposing the Falcons as a one-man team. Initially expected to be out six to 10 weeks, the third-year quarterback's rehabilitation dragged on for 3 1/2 months.

At one point, there appeared to be a rift between player and coach. Reeves said Vick needed to get back on the field; Vick responded that he wouldn't play until he was fully recovered.

Vick played the final two series in a Nov. 30 loss to Houston, then finally made his first start last weekend. He rushed for 141 yards -- the third-highest total by a quarterback in NFL history -- and finally brought a little hope to a dismal season.

But Reeves won't be around for the rest of it. He leaves with a career record of 201-174-2, including the playoffs.

Phillips has 27 years' experience, including three seasons as head coach for the Buffalo Bills from 1998-2000 and two seasons as head coach of the Denver Broncos during the 1993-94 seasons. He also served as interim head coach in New Orleans for the final four games of the 1985 season.

Following Wednesday's practice, Phillips said, "I think my first [goal] is to get the team organized and make sure everybody is on the same page and try to get a system put in where we know what we're doing on and off the field and go from there."

Asked whether or not he has interest in the Falcons' head coaching position, Phillips said, "I'd like to think that I'm a viable candidate because of my record. I'll put mine against anybody's as far as being a head coach in this league.

"But really, my job isn't that right now. My job is to get this team focused on what they're doing this week and the last three weeks and to get them to play as hard as they can play."

Reeves began his head-coaching career in Denver where he compiled a 117-79-1 record from 1981-92. He led the Broncos to three Super Bowls, four AFC championship games, five AFC West Division titles and eight winning seasons. He was named Coach of the Year in 1984, 1989 and 1991.

In 1993, Reeves was named head coach of the New York Giants. He again was named Coach of the Year after leading the Giants to an 11-5 record and a wild-card playoff victory.

Reeves became the Falcons' head coach in 1997. In his second season with the Falcons, Reeves was named Coach of the Year for the fifth time as he led the Falcons to the NFC West title with a 14-2 record and the club's first Super Bowl appearance.

Reeves leaves the Falcons having become just the seventh coach in NFL history to reach 200 victories. He also was the winningest active coach in the league.

"Dan's record in the NFL speaks for itself," Blank said. "He has had a long and successful NFL career as a head coach, assistant coach and player, and his Hall-of-Fame-caliber accomplishments will have a place in the NFL record and history books for years to come."

Overall, Reeves has participated in 50 playoff games and nine Super Bowls as player, assistant coach and head coach.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Firing line

Reeves out as Falcons' head coach; Phillips get interim job


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