Atlanta Falcons: Scott Pioli’s Resignation Is Concerning

Parting Words

As you can see the Atlanta Falcons drafting has improved exponentially, since the arrival of Scott Pioli. This is particularly evident in the defensive front seven and with the left tackle position. The signing of All Pro center Alex Mack, also took place on his watch. Unfortunately for Atlanta, Pioli is moving on to seek other opportunities. It is believed that he would like the challenge of rebuilding a team once again. The timing of this departure is interesting, being that the New York Jets have just recently fired their general manager. ESPN has the story of the firing, in this article by Rich Cimini. Pioli is the former Personnel Director of the Jets, so he is certainly familiar with the organization. Kevin Parra of Around the NFL has the story of Pioli resigning on NFL.com. Pioli gave the following statement after his decision:

"“After careful consideration and ongoing dialogue with Thomas over the past year I have decided to step away from my position as the assistant general manager of the Atlanta Falcons to pursue other potential opportunities. I want to thank both Arthur and Thomas for bringing my family and I here in 2014.” “When I accepted this position more than five years ago, we all believed this would likely be a two or three-year working relationship. I came in to work closely with Thomas on personnel structure, processes and decisions. I loved the concept, was confident I could provide value and have enjoyed the challenge. Now, after more than five years with the Falcons, I am ready for a change. I want to thank all of my co-workers at Flowery Branch as it has truly been an honor to be a part of this organization and I am thankful to have been a part of this football team and the Falcons family.”"

The Atlanta Falcons also released the Pioli statement that can be found by clicking here. Thomas Dimitroff expressed his gratitude toward Pioli in a statement with this quote:

"“We understand and respect the decision Scott, Dallas, and their family have come to today and wish them nothing but the best. Over the last five years Scott has not only provided tremendous value to me, but to the entire the Falcons organization. He is a dear friend and will be missed within our organization. We are continuing to assess the structure within our organization and move forward with our next steps.”"

The concern is that with Pioli leaving, Atlanta could revert to their ways of missing the mark, when selecting offensive and defensive linemen. A positive is, that Pioli was still on board for the Atlanta Falcons drafting of guard Chris Lindstrom and offensive tackle Kaleb Mcgary. He was also a part of signing guards Jamon Brown and James Carpenter. Hopefully the team won’t have to worry about filling a spot on the offensive line, until Pro Bowl center Alex Mack retires. The team could be in the market fora ddefensive lineman real soon, with the status of Grady Jarrett and Vic Beasley unknown after this season. On behalf of the Atl All Day staff, I want to thank Scott Pioli for his contributions to the Atlanta Falcons and wish him the best in future endeavors. He will certainly be missed. My greatest hope is that the student Thomas Dimitroff has learned from the instructor Scott Pioli, or is at least intelligent and humble enough, to again seek help from a more experienced executive than himself, should he need it.