Terry Fontenot’s illustrious career with the Saints is well documented; spending over 17 years in the NFL in any capacity is an impressive feat, especially with one organization. From 2003-2012, he was a Scout in New Orleans then was promoted to Director of Pro Scouting, where he served for six years. Before he made the transition to Atlanta, Fontenot spent a year as Mickey Loomis’s right-hand man as the Assistant General Manager and Vice President of Pro Personnel.
Fontenot’s ability to find talent in free agency at a discount made the hire so interesting. Still, even more intriguing to me, is his participation in week-to-week game plans. With Sean Payton, Fontenot would meet weekly, scouting and devising strategies for the upcoming game. In Atlanta, the leadership positions have a fluid channel of communication from Rich McKay to Terry Fontenot to Arthur Smith.
Arthur Blank, McKay, Fontenot, and Smith are all on the same page. Blank lends an ear to any of the other three; McKay lends an ear to his subordinates, while Smith and Fontenot collaborate on everything from personnel to game plans.
In a system built on collaboration, it would be naive to think Fontenot hasn’t assumed a similar role with the Falcons, preparing game plans with the staff. Jeff Duncan, a columnist for The Times-Picayune/NOLA.com, brought up the possibility of Fontenot having a hand in the Falcons win over the Saints Sunday.
I have no intel on this, but I can't help but think that first-year Atlanta GM Terry Fontenot helped inform the Falcons game plan on Sunday. Atlanta knew exactly where and how to attack the Saints on both sides of the ball. They had a very shrewd game plan and executed it well.
— Jeff Duncan (@JeffDuncan_) November 8, 2021
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