The Atlanta Falcons joined the National Football League (NFL) as the league’s 15th franchise in 1965. Rankin M. Smith Sr. paid a franchise fee of $8.5 million to have the Falcons join the league.
Norm Hecker was the Falcons’ first head coach, but it wasn’t until 1971, under Norm Van Brocklin, that the franchise had their first winning season. Along with fellow quarterback Bob Waterfield, Brocklin led the Los Angeles Rams to a championship in 1951, and in 1960 won a championship with the Philadelphia Eagles. Before coming to the Falcons, Van Brocklin served as the first coach of the Minnesota Vikings, from 1961 to 1966.
Leeman Bennett was hired in 1977, and the team saw its fortunes turn for the better. The 1977 team still holds an NFL team mark by allowing just 129 points in a 14-game season. The Falcons reached the playoffs three times in a five-year span between 1978 and 1982. Some of the key players from this era included quarterback Steve Bartkowski (the No. 1 player taken in the 1975 draft) as well as middle linebacker Tommy Nobis (the team’s very first draft choice in 1965), defensive end Claude Humphrey, and running backs Gerald Riggs and Billy “White Shoes” Johnson. Bartkowski’s No. 10 is the only uniform number retired by the team.
Deion Sanders
In 1989 the Falcons selected Deion Sanders fifth in the draft, out of Florida State. Sanders, an electrifying Hall of Fame inductee is polarizing to many with his comments and behavior. Sanders would spend time with five different NFL teams throughout his career. In his first game with the Falcons, he returned a punt for 68 yards for a touchdown. Sanders has gone to coaching college football. Of interest in that year’s draft is that four of the first players – quarterback Troy Aikman, running back Barry Sanders and Derrick Thoms as well as Sanders – would be inducted into the NFL Hall of Fame.
In 1998, the Falcons had their most successful season in franchise history, as the team won the NFC Western Division with a 14-2 record. The team was led by Pro Bowlers quarterback Chris Chandler and running back Jamal Anderson. Anderson helped create a nickname for the team year with his end zone dances. Nicknamed “Dirty Birds,” the dance was adopted by all the players upon scoring that year. The team lost Super Bowl XXXIII to the Denver Broncos 34-19.
Michael Vick
In 2001, the Falcons chose quarterback Michael Vick first overall, in the NFL draft. Vick helped shape the nature of the position with his rushing abilities, as he was the league’s first quarterback to rush for 1,000 yards in a season. During his six years with the Falcons, he was named to three Pro Bowls and finished second in NFL Most Valuable Player (MVP) voting in leading the team to two playoff appearances.
Over the years, the Falcons have played in several different stadiums. They initially played in Atlanta Stadium (later renamed Atlanta-Fulton County Stadium. From 1966 to 1991. The team then moved to the Georgia Dome in 1992, where they played until 2016. The team currently calls Mercedes-Benz Stadum home.
The Atlanta Falcons play in the National Football Conference (NFC) South Division, along with the Carolina Panthers, New Orleans Saints, and Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
Super Bowl appearance
The Atlanta Falcons again reached the Super Bowl after the 2015 season. Led by MVP Matt Ryan and wide receiver Julio Jones, the Falcons were ahead of the New England Patriots 28-3 at halftime, only to lose 34-28. The stunning defeat is the largest turnaround in Super Bowl history.
The current owner of the team is Arthur Blank, who acquired the team in 2002.
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