ATLANTA: Dan Quinn, who guided Atlanta to the Super Bowl for only the second time in franchise history but infamously squandered a 28-3 lead to Tom Brady and the New England Patriots, was fired on Sunday night in his sixth season as the Falcons coach.
The Falcons have also fired general manager Thomas Dimitroff.
The moves came hours after the Falcons started 0-5 for the first time since 1997, which included becoming the first team in NFL history to squander fourth-quarter leads of at least 15 points in back-to-back games.
Quinn became the second coach to be fired during the season in Arthur Blanks 18 years as owner. He is the second NFL coach this season to lose his job after Houstons Bill OBrien was dismissed following an 0-4 start.
The decisive game for Quinn was a 23-16 loss to the Carolina Panthers on Sunday, leaving him with an overall record of 43-42 but just 14-23 since the beginning of the 2018 season. He was 3-2 in two postseason appearances.
Quinn was hired by the Falcons in 2015 after a highly successful run as Seattles defensive coordinator, highlighted by two straight trips to the Super Bowl.
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