Kevin Stefanski
Ian Cunningham’s Task
By: Kenneth Harrison
TheSouthernSportsEdition.com news services
The Atlanta Falcons recently hired Ian Cunningham as the new General Manager.
He was the Assistant General Manager for the Chicago Bears from 2022-25. As you know, the Bears won the NFC North title in 2025. He will report directly to Matt Ryan, the team’s president of football.
“It was evident through our rigorous interview process Ian was the right choice for our general manager position,’ said Ryan. “His vision for our team and organization aligned exactly with the type of leader we were seeking to help take the Falcons to the next level. Throughout Ian’s career, including Super Bowl championships in Baltimore and Philadelphia, Ian has demonstrated the drive and focus it takes to build championship contenders and put them in the position to win games. We love his broad and deep experience across every aspect of talent evaluation and know he’s learned from some of the best in the league. Pairing him with Coach Stefanski is exciting for us, and we can’t wait to see them bring our shared vision to life in everything we do starting right now.”
Cunningham will have to hit the ground running in his new position. He will have just over five weeks before the start of the new NFL business year at 4 p.m. March 11 and several major decisions to make, working with Ryan and Head Coach Kevin Stefanski.
He’ll have more money to spend with the new NFL salary cap projected to be between $301.2 and $305.7 million, up from $279.2 million last year.
One big question is what will the team do with quarterback Kirk Cousins. He might be released and allowed to test the open market.
If he does not find a suitor he might return to Atlanta. Stefanski was his coordinator in Minnesota so that might be appealing to Cousins.
“It’s been incredible to build a relationship with (president of football) Matt (Ryan) over the last several weeks and to have an immediate connection with (coach) Kevin (Stefanski).” Cunningham said in a statement released by the team Thursday night announcing his hire.
“I can’t wait to work with both of these great football minds to put a team on the field everyone will be very excited about. … It’s time to work.”
Bears General Manager Ryan Poles was happy for his former colleague, who was the assistant GM with the Bears when the Falcons hired him.
“I couldn’t be happier for him,” Poles said. “He’s ready. He’s prepared. I know it’s been a tough interview cycle over these last few years. I know he’s gotten his hopes up but as I always told him, when the right opportunity presents itself, he’d be able to close it up and get that job.”
During his time in Chicago as Assistant General Manager, four players acquired earned three All-Pro honors and four Pro Bowl selections in Kevin Byard, Drew Dalman, Montez Sweat and Joe Thuney.
The 2025 Chicago offense finished sixth in the NFL in total offense with 13 of 15 players who played at least 400 snaps acquired during Cunningham’s tenure.
The franchise tag window opens February 17 and runs through March 3. The NFL Scouting Combine is set for Febuary 23 through March 2 in Indianapolis.
It will be interesting to see what they will do with Tight End Kyle Pitts. They will have time to work out a contract extension before the franchise tag period begins.
The NFL draft will be held April 23-25 in Pittsburgh. On paper this seems like a good hire but I want to see what will be done in free agency and the draft.
Baker’s New Vendetta Against Atlanta Falcons
By: Robert Craft
TheSouthernSportsEdition.com news services
Baker Mayfield might have extra motivation when the Tampa Bay Buccaneers take on the Atlanta Falcons next season, and it has everything to do with Atlanta’s new head coach, Kevin Stefanski.
Stefanski, who is joining the Falcons after spending five years in Cleveland, was Mayfield’s coach during his first two seasons with the Browns (2020, 2021).
Their collaboration ended when the Browns traded Mayfield to the Carolina Panthers for a conditional 2024 draft pick (a fifth-rounder that became a fourth-rounder)
Based on his Tuesday evening tweet, Mayfield appears to be unhappy with how his tenure in Cleveland ended.
“Still waiting on a text/call from him after I got shipped off like a piece of garbage,” Mayfield posted on X on Tuesday night. “Can’t wait to see you twice a year, Coach.”
Mayfield’s shot came in response to a reporter’s post asserting that Stefanski’s quarterbacks room in Cleveland was a “dumpster fire,” and that Mayfield and his successor, Deshaun Watson, had “failed.”
“Failed is quite the reach pal,” Mayfield wrote.
The Browns selected Mayfield with the first pick in the 2018 NFL Draft, and he compiled a 29-30 record as a starter during his four seasons with the franchise.
His best season in Cleveland was Stefanski’s first (2020). Mayfield completed 62.8 percent of his passes that year for 3,563 yards, 26 touchdowns and just eight interceptions.
The Browns went 11-5 and won a playoff game in the wild-card round before falling to the Kansas City Chiefs.
Mayfield and the Browns weren’t able to match that success in 2021, however, and the franchise decided to part ways with the quarterback.
Mayfield’s time with the Panthers didn’t last. Carolina waived Mayfield in December 2022 after he went 1-5 as a starter.
The Rams later claimed Mayfield, and he played well enough in his four starts with Los Angeles that he earned a shot with the Bucs as a free agent.
After helping Tampa Bay win the NFC South in 2023, Mayfield signed a three-year, $100 million contract extension with the club.
While Mayfield resurrected his career as QB1, the Browns made one more playoff appearance after his departure but won just eight games through the 2024 and 2025 seasons.
Did the Browns make Mayfield toxic? Or was he already that way and his environment just brought it to the surface? Whatever side you believe, one thing is certain: Mayfield will never change. He is who he is.
The Browns certainly did not set Mayfield up for success early in his career with three head coaches and three offensive coordinators in his first three years in the league.
Now the Buccaneers are facing the same hard questions Browns personnel once had to answer. Mayfield is entering the final year of his deal in Tampa. He has been a success for the Bucs, but is he worth a top-scale quarterback contract? If not, then what?
The more things change, the more they stay the same. That goes for Baker Mayfield, too.
