Atlanta Falcons request to interview Brian Callahan, Raheem Morris, Aaron Glenn, Anthony Weaver

As NFL jobs come open, the Falcons are quickly moving to find the right guy after terminating third-year coach Arthur Smith hours after the season ended.

So far, the Falcons have asked for permission to interview Bengals offensive coordinator Brian Callahan, along with Raheem Morris and Aaron Glenn. Morris is the defensive coordinator for the Rams, while Glenn is DC for the Lions. In addition, the NFL Network said the Falcons also want to interview Anthony Weaver, the Ravens associate head coach.

Of course, Bill Belichick could emerge as a candidate. There’s lots of chatter Thursday morning connecting Belichick to the Falcons after the Patriots and the iconic coach announced they were parting ways.

The Falcons fired Smith after the coach couldn’t break a 7-10 pattern. That was Smith’s record for the past three seasons.

Falcons candidates will be popular with other NFL teams

Atlanta needed to get ahead of several teams in the NFL that have coaching vacancies. The Raiders, Chargers and Panthers already were looking after dismissing their coaches during the season. Then the Commanders, as expected, let go of Ron Rivera as part of NFL’s annual “Black Monday.” (That’s the day after the regular season ends). The Titans parted ways with Mike Vrabel.

Then came some monumental news. The Seahawks announced their intentions of reassigning Pete Carroll, one of the best coaches ever in the NFL and the NCAA. And before sunrise, Thursday, news broke that Belichick would no longer coach the Patriots.

The Falcons, like all the other teams with vacancies, could start arranging interviews earlier this week. These talks must be done virtually, with all completed by Jan. 21. In-person interviews can start Jan. 22.

All four assistants associated with the Falcons head coaching jobs are going to be popular candidates with other teams.