Rams offer 'clear-cut example' of what Falcons want to be, but will this staff get there?
Before returning to the Falcons, Morris spent three years with the Rams and wants to mimic their organizational structure and culture.
ATLANTA — As the Atlanta Falcons settle into their spot on the Mercedes-Benz Stadium sideline before Monday night’s matchup against the Los Angeles Rams, Raheem Morris is hoping owner Arthur Blank will like what he sees enough to be patient.
In his second year as the Falcons’ head coach, Morris has been transparent about his desire to copy-and-paste much of the Rams’ system on the East Coast. But he enters the penultimate game of the season uncertain if he’ll be retained for a third year.
“We have definitely mimicked a lot of things that they do and want to continue to do that,” Morris said this week. “It’s done the right way, and being a part of it is a lot of fun.”
Morris was the Rams’ defensive coordinator from 2021 through 2023, joining them the season after serving as the Falcons’ interim head coach to finish the 2020 season. He was then rehired by the Falcons in 2024. Los Angeles was 27-24 and won a Super Bowl in that stretch.
Morris wants that same structure and culture in Atlanta, which is part of the reason he brought both of his original coordinators from L.A. Defensive coordinator Jimmy Lake was fired after his first season (and immediately returned to the Rams as a senior defensive assistant), and offensive coordinator Zac Robinson is finishing his second season with an offense ranked 26th in scoring (20.47 ppg) and 24th in EPA (minus-0.84 per game).
Bring on the prime time battle 😤 pic.twitter.com/rpzvpoDaVG
— Atlanta Falcons (@AtlantaFalcons) December 27, 2025
The Rams’ secret is a “we, not me” mentality that permeates the building, Morris said.
“It’s being implemented here at a very high level,” he said. “It’s taking time, probably more time than we all want. We want it to happen tomorrow, too, but it’s going to happen.”
The Falcons finished 8-9 in Morris’ first season and are 6-9 headed into Monday night’s game, putting Morris’ third year in jeopardy and making this an opportune week for the head coach to point to an example of his plan for the organization.
“They are a clear-cut example of what it looks like,” Morris said. “You steal what you steal from the Rams, and you move on and form your own identity and your own stuff in your own building. It takes time, and it takes everybody.”
Morris and Rams head coach Sean McVay share similar coaching styles, Robinson said.
“First and foremost, it is just culture over everything,” Robinson said. “You look at that building, and it’s just an incredible culture set by Sean, set by the leaders at each position in that building. The phrase that Sean always uses, and it’s so true, is ‘urgency and enjoyment.’”
McVay, a graduate of Atlanta-area Marist School, is 91-56 in nine seasons in Los Angeles and has made two Super Bowl appearances, winning once.