FLOWERY BRANCH, Ga. — The Atlanta Falcons have completed a virtual interview with Brian Johnson for the organization’s head coach position, the team announced Thursday, Jan. 18.
The 36-year-old just wrapped up his third season overall with the Philadelphia Eagles, his first as the offensive coordinator with the team. His team lost, 32-9, to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the wild-card round and was therefore eliminated from the NFL playoffs. The Eagles finished 11-6 in the regular season and 0-1 in the postseason. Johnson officially became available to interview on Wednesday.
Per NFL protocols, interviews with employees of other clubs must be conducted virtually prior to the conclusion of Divisional Playoff games on Sunday, Jan. 21. If the employer club has a Wild Card bye, virtual interviews must be conducted prior to the conclusion of Wild Card games.
If the employer club was a wild-card participant, virtual interviews may begin three days after its wild-card game and must be conducted prior to the conclusion of divisional playoff games.
Beginning Monday, Jan. 22, clubs may conduct in-person or virtual interviews with candidates who are employed by other NFL clubs whose seasons have concluded and are prohibited from conducting initial interviews with candidates who are employed by clubs participating in the Conference Championship Games until the conclusion of the employer club’s season.
Let’s learn more about someone the Falcons are considering to become the 19th head coach in franchise history.
Interview date: Thursday, Jan. 18
Current job: Philadelphia Eagles offensive coordinator
- University of Houston, 2017: Johnson spent a season as the offensive coordinator/quarterbacks coach.
- University of Florida, 2018-20: Johnson went on to serve as the quarterbacks coach for two seasons before he added offensive coordinator responsibilities to his final season.
- Philadelphia Eagles, 2021-23: Johnson moved to the NFL level and started as the quarterbacks coach for two seasons before he was promoted to offensive coordinator.
Local connections: Johnson’s time at Florida overlapped with Falcons tight end Kyle Pitts’ three-year collegiate career with the Gators. Johnson was the quarterbacks coach, so he may have spent some but not a lot of time working directly with Pitts. Regardless, it’s a tie in Atlanta.