Professor

The Falcons were granted permission to interview Tennessee defensive coordinator Jim Schwartz for the team's vacant head coaching position on Tuesday. The interview will take place this week. However, the Falcons were denied permission Tuesday to interview New York Giants defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo for the head coaching position.

The Falcons are conducting simultaneous searches for a coach and general manager, although Blank said he would prefer to hire the GM before a coach.

The potential pool of coaching candidates that could interview this week could come from teams that won wild card playoff games last weekend, like Spagnuolo's Giants. This week is the NFL allotted window for coaches from those teams to interview for jobs if granted permission.

Coaching candidates with teams not in the playoffs can interview at any point.

Smith and Mara are the fourth and fifth candidates known to have interviewed for Atlanta's GM post. Philadelphia general manager Tom Heckert interviewed for the general manager job on Monday.

Coincidentally, Heckert and Spagnuolo worked together with the Eagles from 2001 to 2007, when Spagnuolo, who had worked his way up to linebackers coach, left Philadelphia to take the Giants job as defensive coordinator.

Reggie McKenzie, Green Bay's director of pro personnel, and John Schneider, the Packers personnel analyst, interviewed last week for the GM post that is being vacated by McKay. More general manager candidates could be interviewed over the coming days, the NFL official said.

Indianapolis assistant head coach Jim Caldwell, Dallas offensive assistants Tony Sparano and Jason Garrett and former Baltimore defensive coordinator Rex Ryan have interviewed for the coaching vacancy within the past week.

Blank has declined comment on the search process until a new general manager has been hired.

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