Every report we’ve seen about Arthur Smith’s job security has been pretty consistent. The Atlanta Falcons would obviously prefer to keep him around barring a late collapse, but the loss to the Panthers was such a dire, dour game that it made that loosely defined “collapse” seem like it might be unfolding. A win over the Colts last week, easily the most impressive such victory of the season, clouded the picture further.
But again, it has long seemed evident that Arthur Blank is fond of Smith and leaning toward keeping him, with the late season collapse language seemingly more about giving himself an out if things got really bad than a careful weighing of the possibility.