"Cunningham, 40, had been the Bears' assistant GM since 2022. He was instrumental in pulling off several big trades in Chicago, including sending linebacker Roquan Smith to the Baltimore Ravens and defensive end Robert Quinn to the Philadelphia Eagles in 2022 -- the first year of the Bears' rebuild. Prior to that, the Virginia native worked with the Eagles, ascending from their director of college scouting in 2017 to their director of player personnel in 2021."
"The Falcons fired former general manager Terry Fontenot and coach Raheem Morris earlier this month. Fontenot had not put forth a winning team in five seasons with the organization. Morris guided Atlanta to back-to-back 8-9 records in his two years. The Falcons have not made the playoffs nor had a winning record since 2017. After their departures, the Falcons worked to change the shape of their organizational structure."
The Atlanta Falcons are expected to hire Ian Cunningham as their new general manager after he interviewed in person; Houston Texans assistant GM James Liipfert was another finalist. Cunningham served as the Chicago Bears' assistant GM since 2022 and executed major trades, including sending Roquan Smith to the Baltimore Ravens and Robert Quinn to the Philadelphia Eagles during the Bears' rebuild. Cunningham previously rose through the Philadelphia Eagles' scouting and personnel ranks and began his NFL personnel career with the Baltimore Ravens. He played offensive line at Virginia and spent time with the Kansas City Chiefs as an undrafted free agent. The Falcons dismissed GM Terry Fontenot and coach Raheem Morris amid prolonged losing results and reorganized leadership, hiring Matt Ryan as president of football and Kevin Stefanski as coach; Stefanski had some input on the Cunningham hire. Cunningham was also a finalist for the Falcons' president role and shares a connection with Ryan.
Read at ESPN.com
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