ATLANTA FALCONS

The 'Atlanta Falcons' are a American football team based in Atlanta, Georgia. They are currently a member of the NFC South of the National Football Conference (NFC) in the National Football League (NFL). The Falcons joined the NFL as a 1966 expansion team. In their 41 years of existence, the Falcons have compiled a record of 258-374-6 with division championships in 1980, 1998 and 2004, and appeared in Super Bowl XXXIII in Miami, Florida, losing 34-19 to the Denver Broncos.

Franchise history

The Atlanta Falcons franchise began on June 30, 1965 when NFL Commissioner Pete Rozelle granted ownership to Rankin M. Smith Sr. The Atlanta Falcons would draft LB Tommy Nobis from the University of Texas with the first pick of the 1966 NFL Draft, making him the first ever Falcon.
The Falcons had its first season in 1966, and had its first game (preseason) on August 1, 1966 where it was handed a defeat to the Philadelphia Eagles. Losing its first nine games that season, its first victory was on the road against the New York Giants. It would finish the 1960s with only 12 wins. The Falcons would have its first Monday Night Football game in Atlanta during the 1970 season, and although it had a losing record in 1970, the 1971 season was its first winning record.
In the 1978 season, the Falcons entered its first playoff series, and won the Wild Card Playoffs against the Eagles only to lose to the Dallas Cowboys in the Divisional Playoffs. In 1980, it finished 12-4 only to lose again to the Cowboys in the Divisional Playoffs. After the 1981 season, the Atlanta Falcons would not see another playoff series until 1991, when it lost to the Washington Redskins in the Divisional Playoffs.
Led by QB Chris Chandler and RB Jamal Anderson, the "Dirty Bird" Falcons had their greatest season to date in 1998. On November 8, they won 41-10 over the Patriots at New England, snapping a streak of 22 consecutive losses at cold-weather sites in November and December that had dated back to 1982. The team finished with a 14-2 regular season record and the NFC West division championship. On January 18, 1999, the Falcons upset the top-seeded 15-1 Vikings at Minnesota in the NFC Championship Game, 30-27 in overtime. They would lose, 34-19, to the Denver Broncos in Super Bowl XXXIII.
In the 2001 NFL Draft, the Falcons orchestrated a trade with the San Diego Chargers, acquiring the first overall pick (which would be used on quarterback Michael Vick) in exchange for wide receiver Tim Dwight and the fifth overall pick (used on running back LaDainian Tomlinson). Michael Vick would be backup to starting QB Chris Chandler, and would be the full-time starting quarterback by 2002. He would lead them to the playoffs in 2002 only to lose to the Philadelphia Eagles once again in the Divisional Playoffs. During the 2003 preseason, Michael Vick broke his leg and missed the first twelve games of the season, bringing their record to a dismal 5-11 record.
Vick would return for the full season in 2004, when the Falcons went 11-5. They made it to the Conference Championship, once again losing to the Eagles. The Falcons failed yet again to maintain back to back winning seasons in 2005, going 8-8. The 2006 Falcons had a chance to make the playoffs until the New York Giants beat the Washington Redskins, helping to seal their record at a losing 7-9.

Logo and uniforms

When the team debuted in 1966, the Falcons wore red helmets with a black falcon crest logo. They wore white pants and either black or white jerseys. At first, the falcon crest logo was also put on the jersey sleeves, but it was replaced by a red and white stripe pattern four year later. They switched from black to red jerseys in 1971, and the club began to wear silver pants in 1978.
A prototype white helmet was developed for the team prior to the 1974 season, but never worn.
In 1990, the uniform design changed to black helmets, silver pants, and either black or white jerseys. The numbers on the white jerseys were black, but were changed to red in 1997.^[1] (The red numerals could be seen on the away jerseys briefly in 1990.)
Both the logo and uniforms changed in 2003. The logo was redesigned with red and silver accents to depict a more powerful, aggressive falcon, which now more closely resembles the capital letter ''F''.^[2] Although the Falcons still wore black helmets, the new uniforms featured jerseys and pants with red trim down the sides. The uniform design consisted of either black or white jerseys, and either black or white pants. During that same year, a red alternate jersey with black trim was also introduced. The Falcons also started wearing black cleats with these uniforms.
In 2004, the red jerseys became the primary jerseys, and the black ones became the alternate, primarily wearing white pants with the white jerseys and white pants with the red jerseys. The Falcons also in select road games wear black pants with white jerseys. In the past three seasons, the Falcons wore an all-black combination for home games against their archrivals, the New Orleans Saints, winning the first two contests (24-21 in 2004 and 36-17 in 2005), but losing 31-13 in 2006. They wore the combination again in 2006, against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in Week 2. The Falcons won that game as well, 14-3.
In the 1980s the Falcons primarily wore their white uniforms at home mainly to gain an advantage due to the heat and humidity of Atlanta's climate. When the team moved indoors, the Falcons switched to wearing their dark uniforms at home. The Falcons have worn white at home a few times since moving indoors. In 2002, the Falcons wore white at home for a game against the Bengals. In 2003, the Falcons wore white for a game against the Panthers.

Statistics

Season-by-season records

|-
|1966 || 3 || 11 || 0 || 7th East || --
|-
|1967 || 1 || 12 || 1 || 4th Coastal || --
|-
|1968 || 2 || 12 || 0 || 4th Coastal|| --
|-
|1969 || 6 || 8 || 0 || 3rd Coastal || --
|-
|1970 || 4 || 8 || 2 || 4th NFC West || --
|-
|1971 || 7 || 6 || 1 || 3rd NFC West || --
|-
|1972 || 7 || 7 || 0 || 2nd NFC West || --
|-
|1973 || 9 || 5 || 0 || 2nd NFC West || --
|-
|1974 || 3 || 11 || 0 || 4th NFC West || --
|-
|1975 || 4 || 10 || 0 || 4th NFC West || --
|-
|1976 || 4 || 10 || 0 || 4th NFC West || --
|-
|1977 || 7 || 7 || 0 || 2nd NFC West || --
|-
|1978 || 9 || 7 || 0 || 2nd NFC West || 'Won' Wild Card Playoffs (Eagles) 14-13
Lost Divisional Playoffs (Cowboys) 27-20
|-
|1979 || 6 || 10 || 0 || 3rd NFC West || --
|-
|1980 || 12 || 4 || 0 || '1st NFC West' || Lost Divisional Playoffs (Cowboys) 30-27
|-
|1981 || 7 || 9 || 0 || 2nd NFC West || --
|-
|1982¹ || 5 || 4 || 0 || 5th NFC || Lost First Round (Vikings) 30-24
|-
|1983 || 7 || 9 || 0 || 4th NFC West || --
|-
|1984 || 4 || 12 || 0 || 4th NFC West || --
|-
|1985 || 4 || 12 || 0 || 4th NFC West || --
|-
|1986 || 7 || 8 || 1 || 4th NFC West || --
|-
|1987 || 3 || 12 || 0 || 4th NFC West || --
|-
|1988 || 5 || 11 || 0 || 4th NFC West || --
|-
|1989 || 3 || 13 || 0 || 4th NFC West || --
|-
|1990 || 5 || 11 || 0 || 4th NFC West || --
|-
|1991 || 10 || 6 || 0 || 2nd NFC West || 'Won' Wild Card Playoffs (Saints) 27-20
Lost Divisional Playoffs (Redskins) 24-7
|-
|1992 || 6 || 10 || 0 || 3rd NFC West || --
|-
|1993 || 6 || 10 || 0 || 3rd NFC West || --
|-
|1994 || 7 || 9 || 0 || 2nd NFC West || --
|-
|1995 || 9 || 7 || 0 || 2nd NFC West || Lost Wild Card Playoffs (Packers) 37-20
|-
|1996 || 3 || 13 || 0 || 4th NFC West || --
|-
|1997 || 7 || 9 || 0 || 3rd NFC West || --
|-
|1998 || 14 || 2 || 0 || '1st NFC West' || 'Won' Divisional Playoffs (49ers) 20-18
'Won' Conference Championship (Vikings) 30-27
Lost Super Bowl XXXIII (Broncos) 34-19
|-
|1999 || 5 || 11 || 0 || 3rd NFC West || --
|-
|2000 || 4 || 12 || 0 || 5th NFC West || --
|-
|2001 || 7 || 9 || 0 || 4th NFC West || --
|-
|2002 || 9 || 6 || 1 || 2nd NFC South || 'Won' Wild Card Playoffs (Packers) 27-7
Lost Divisional Playoffs (Eagles) 20-6
|-
|2003 || 5 || 11 || 0 || 4th NFC South || --
|-
|2004 || 11 || 5 || 0 || '1st NFC South' || 'Won' Divisional Playoffs (Rams) 47-17
Lost Conference Championship (Eagles) 27-10
|-
|2005 || 8 || 8 || 0 || 3rd NFC South || --
|-
|2006 || 7 || 9 || 0 || 3rd NFC South || --
|-
|2007 || -- || -- || -- || -- || --
|-
!rowspan="3"|Totals || 252 || 366 || 6
|colspan="2"| (1966-2006, regular season)
|-
! 6 || 8 || -
|colspan="2"| (1966-2006, playoffs)
|-
! 258 || 374 || 6
|colspan="2"| (all games, 1966-2006, including playoffs)

★ The Falcons still have never posted consecutive winning seasons at any point in the franchise's history.
¹ Due to a strike-shortened season in 1982, all teams were ranked by conference instead of division.

Record vs. opponents

(As of January 1, 2007. Includes postseason records.)
|-
| San Diego Chargers || 6 || 1 || 0 || .857 || W 21-20 || October 17, 2004 || Atlanta, Georgia ||
|-
| Carolina Panthers || 15 || 9 || 0 || .625 || L 10-3 || December 24, 2006 || Atlanta, Georgia ||
|-
| New Orleans Saints || 44 || 32 || 0 || .579 || L 31-13 || November 26, 2006 || Atlanta, Georgia || 1-0 postseason
|-
| Buffalo Bills || 5 || 4 || 0 || .555 || W 24-16 || September 25, 2005 || Orchard Park, New York ||
|-
| New York Giants || 10 || 8 || 0 || .555 || L 27-14 || October 15, 2006 || Atlanta, Georgia ||
|-
| New York Jets || 5 || 4 || 0 || .555 || W 27-14 || October 24, 2005 || Atlanta, Georgia ||
|-
| New England Patriots || 6 || 5 || 0 || .545 || L 31-28 || October 9, 2005 || Atlanta, Georgia ||
|-
| Green Bay Packers || 11 || 13 || 0 || .458 || L 33-25 || November 13, 2005 || Atlanta, Georgia || 1-1 postseason
|-
| Chicago Bears || 10 || 12 || 0 || .454 || L 16-3 || December 18, 2005 || Chicago, Illinois ||
|-
| Hou. Oilers/Tennessee Titans || 5 || 6 || 0 || .454 || L 38-31 || November 23, 2003 || Atlanta, Georgia ||
|-
| Tampa Bay Buccaneers || 12 || 15 || 0 || .444 || W 17-6 || December 10, 2006 || Tampa, Florida ||
|-
| St. Louis/Arizona Cardinals || 10 || 13 || 0 || .434 || W 32-10 || October 1, 2006 || Atlanta, Georgia ||
|-
| Philadelphia Eagles || 11 || 14 || 1 || .423 || L 24-17 || December 31, 2006 || Philadelphia, Pennsylvania || 1-2 postseason
|-
| Minnesota Vikings || 9 || 15 || 0 || .375 || W 30-10 || October 2, 2005 || Atlanta, Georgia || 1-1 postseason
|-
| San Francisco 49ers || 27 || 44 || 1 || .375 || W 21-19 || September 12, 2004 || San Francisco, California || 1-0 posteason
|-
| Cincinnati Bengals || 4 || 7 || 0 || .364 || W 29-27 || October 29, 2006 || Cincinnati, Ohio ||
|-
| Los Angeles/Oakland Raiders || 4 || 7 || 0 || .364 || W 35-10 || December 12, 2004 || Atlanta, Georgia ||
|-
| Dallas Cowboys || 8 || 15 || 0 || .348 || L 38-28 || December 16, 2006 || Atlanta, Georgia || 0-2 postseason
|-
| Los Angeles/St. Louis Rams || 25 || 46 || 2 || .342 || W 47-17⁽¹⁾ || January 15, 2005 || Atlanta, Georgia || 1-0 postseason
|-
| Baltimore Ravens || 1 || 2 || 0 || .333 || L 24-10 || November 19, 2006 || Baltimore, Maryland ||
|-
| Denver Broncos || 4 || 8 || 0 || .333 || W 41-28 || October 31, 2004 || Denver, Colorado || 0-1 postseason
|-
| Jacksonville Jaguars || 1 || 2 || 0 || .333 || W 21-14 || December 28, 2003 || Atlanta, Georgia ||
|-
| Miami Dolphins || 3 || 7 || 0 || .300 || W 17-10 || November 6, 2005 || Miami Gardens, Florida ||
|-
| Detroit Lions || 9 || 23 || 0 || .281 || L 30-14 || November 5, 2006 || Detroit, Michigan ||
|-
| Washington Redskins || 5 || 15 || 1 || .238 || W 24-14 || December 3, 2006 || Landover, Maryland || 0-1 postseason
|-
| Seattle Seahawks || 2 || 8 || 0 || .200 || L 21-18 || September 18, 2005 || Seattle, Washington ||
|-
| Cleveland Browns || 2 || 10 || 0 || .166 || L 17-13 || November 12, 2006 || Atlanta, Georgia ||
|-
| Kansas City Chiefs || 1 || 5 || 0 || .166 || L 56-10 || October 24, 2004 || Kansas City, Missouri ||
|-
| Pittsburgh Steelers || 2 || 11 || 1 || .143 || W 41-38 (OT) || October 22, 2006 || Atlanta, Georgia ||
|-
| Baltimore/Indianapolis Colts || 1 || 12 || 0 || .077 || L 38-7 || December 14, 2003 || Indianapolis, Indiana ||
|-
| Houston Texans || 0 || 1 || 0 || .000 || L 17-13 || November 30, 2003 || Houston, Texas ||
⁽¹⁾ - 2005 NFC Divisional Playoff Game

Single season records

★ 'Passing Attempts': 557 Jeff George (1995)

★ 'Passing Completions': 336 Jeff George (1995)

★ 'Passing Yards': 4,143 Jeff George (1995)

★ 'Passing Touchdowns': 31 Steve Bartkowski (1980)

★ 'Passing Interceptions': 25 Bobby Hebert (1996)

★ 'Passing Rating': 110.2 Wade Wilson (1992)

★ 'Rushing Attempts': 410 Jamal Anderson (1998)

★ 'Rushing Yards': 1,846 Jamal Anderson (1998)

★ 'Rushing Yards By a QB': 1039 Michael Vick (2006)

★ 'Rushing Touchdowns': 14 Jamal Anderson (1998)

★ 'Receiving Catches': 111 Terance Mathis (1994)

★ 'Receiving Yards': 1,358 Alfred Jenkins (1981)

★ 'Receiving Touchdowns': 15 Andre Rison (1993)

★ 'Quarterback Sacks': 16 Joel Williams (1981)

★ 'Pass Interceptions': 10 Scott Case (1988)

★ 'Field Goal Attempts': 40 Jay Feely (2002)

★ 'Field Goals Made': 32 Jay Feely (2002)

★ 'Points': 138 Jay Feely (2002)

★ 'Total Touchdowns': 16 Jamal Anderson (1998)

Falcons career records

★ 'Passing Attempts': 3,329 Steve Bartkowski (1975-85)

★ 'Passing Completions': 1,870 Steve Bartkowski (1975-85)

★ 'Passing Yards': 23,468 Steve Bartkowski (1975-85)

★ 'Passing Touchdowns': 154 Steve Bartkowski (1975-85)

★ 'Passing Interceptions': 141 Steve Bartkowski (1975-85)

★ 'Passing Rating': 87.4 Chris Chandler (1997-2001)

★ 'Rushing Attempts': 1,587 Gerald Riggs (1982-88)

★ 'Rushing Yards': 6,631 Gerald Riggs (1982-88)

★ 'Rushing Touchdowns': 48 Gerald Riggs (1982-88)

★ 'Receiving Catches': 573 Terance Mathis (1994-2001)

★ 'Receiving Yards': 7,349 Terance Mathis (1994-2001)

★ 'Receiving Touchdowns': 57 Terance Mathis (1994-2001)

★ 'Quarterback Sacks': 94.5 Claude Humphrey (1968-78)

★ 'Pass Interceptions': 39 Rolland Lawrence (1973-81)

★ 'Field Goal Attempts': 164 Mick Luckhurst (1981-87)

★ 'Field Goals Made': 139 Morten Andersen (1995-2000, 2006)

★ 'Points': 620 Morten Andersen (1995-2000, 2006)

★ 'Total Touchdowns': 57 Terance Mathis (1994-2001)

Players of note

Current roster

===Pro Football Hall of Famers===
No one has yet been inducted based substantially on their service with the Falcons; however, two inductees played briefly for the Falcons late in their careers:

★ 29 Eric Dickerson, RB, elected 1993

★ 25 Tommy McDonald, WR, elected 1967

Retired numbers

★ 10 Steve Bartkowski, QB, 1975-85

★ 31 William Andrews, RB, 1979-83, 1986 (short-lived comeback after knee injury)

★ 57 Jeff Van Note, C, 1969-86

★ 58 Jessie Tuggle, LB, 1987-2000

★ 60 Tommy Nobis, LB, 1966-76

★ 78 Mike Kenn, T, 1978-94

Georgia Sports Hall of Fame

★ 60 Tommy Nobis, LB, 1966-76

★ 87 Claude Humphrey, DE, 1968-78

★ 57 Jeff Van Note, C, 1969-86

★ Marion Campbell, Head Coach, 1974-76, 1987-89 (also Georgia native and former University of Georgia player)

★ 84 Alfred Jenkins, WR, 1975-83

★ 31 William Andrews, RB, 1979-83, 1986

★ Dan Reeves, Head Coach, 1997-2003 (also Georgia native)

Other notable alumni

★ Morten Andersen (1995-2000, 2006)

★ Jamal Anderson

★ Greg Brezina

★ Ray Buchanan

★ Chris Chandler

★ Scott Case

★ Buddy Curry

★ T.J. Duckett

★ Bill Fralic

★ Wallace Francis

★ Bill Goldberg

★ Michael Haynes

★ Billy "White Shoes" Johnson

★ Fulton Kuykendall

★ Rolland Lawrence

★ Terance Mathis

★ Tony Martin

★ Chris Miller

★ Junior Miller

★ Jim Mitchell

★ Tom Pridemore

★ Ken Reaves

★ Gerald Riggs

★ Andre Rison

★ Deion Sanders

★ R.C. Thielemann

★ John Zook

★ David Archer

★ Bob Berry

★ Scott Campbell

★ Brett Favre

★ Jeff George

★ Bobby Hebert

★ Erik Kramer

★ Randy Johnson

★ Bob Lee

★ Hugh Millen

All-time first-round draft picks

Coaches of note

Head coaches

★ Norb Hecker (1966-68)

★ Norm Van Brocklin (1968-74)

★ Marion Campbell (1974-76)

★ Pat Peppler (interim) (1976)

★ Leeman Bennett (1977-82)

★ Dan Henning (1983-86)

★ Marion Campbell (1987-89)

★ Jim Hanifan (interim) (1989)

★ Jerry Glanville (1990-93)

★ June Jones (1994-96)

★ Dan Reeves (1997-2003)

★ Wade Phillips (interim) (2003)

★ Jim Mora (2004-06)

★ Bobby Petrino (2007-''present'')

Current staff

Cheerleaders

Atlanta's NFL Cheerleaders are simply known as the Atlanta Falcons Cheerleaders.

Radio and television

As of 2006, the Falcons' radio flagship station is WZGC, an adult hits format station known as "Dave FM." Wes Durham, son of longtime North Carolina Tar Heels voice Woody Durham, is the play-by-play announcer. Preseason games not shown on national television are seen on NBC affiliate WXIA, also known as "11 Alive."

Notes and references

1. "Falcons Uniform History", NFL
2. "Falcons unveil New logo", NFL

External links

★ Official Website

★ Sports E-Cyclopedia.com

★ The Atlanta Falcons at GeorgiaEncyclopedia.org

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