Former Falcons Assistant Coach Lands New Gig With NFC Foe
The Atlanta Falcons hired Jeff Ulbrich as their new defensive coordinator this offseason. The former New York Jets interim head coach was previously the Falcons defensive coordinator in 2020.
After announcing the return of Ulbrich, I was interested to see if another former Falcons defensive coordinator, Marquand Manuel, was also set to come back to Atlanta. Manuel served as the Jets safeties coach on Ulbrich’s staff the past four seasons.
But ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler reported on Jan. 22 that Manuel will stay in New York, coaching the safeties with the New York Giants.
Manuel began his NFL coaching career with the Seattle Seahawks under Dan Quinn in 2012. He was a defensive assistant in Seattle when the team won the Super Bowl during 2013 and served as the Seahawks assistant secondary coach in 2014.
After that season, Manuel followed Quinn to Atlanta. He was the secondary coach on Quinn’s first staff with the Falcons and held that role when the team went to the Super Bowl in 2016. Safeties Keanu Neal and Ricardo Allen became Pro Bowl-type players while Manuel was on Atlanta’s coaching staff.
In 2017, Manuel received a promotion to Falcons defensive coordinator after the team fired defensive coordinator Richard Smith following the Super Bowl collapse.
Manuel was Atlanta’s defensive coordinator for two years. The team was ninth in rushing yards allowed and 12th in passing defense during 2017. The unit greatly declined in 2018, but Manuel’s unit dealt with significant injuries to key players such as Neal, Allen and Deion Jones.
The Falcons fired Manuel after the 2018 season.
Not that the team shouldn’t have made a change, but the Falcons defense has struggled since Manuel’s departure. Quinn became his own defensive coordinator in 2019, which was a disasterous move. Ironically, Raheem Morris and Ulbrich served as Atlanta’s defensive coordinator the following season.
The Falcons will have the same duo at head coach and defensive coordinator next fall.
Meanwhile, Manuel will join a staff that could enter the 2025 season on the hot seat. Giants head coach Brian Daboll went 9-7-1 in his first season with New York in 2022. But over the past two seasons, he owns a 9-25 record.
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