Atlanta Falcons
Team Stats
NFC South
1966
Georgia Dome
Zero Super Bowl wins - 0-1 record
Head Coach
-
-
Mike Smith
- 11-5
- 0-1
- One season
- 11-6
Mike Smith became an NFL head coach for the first time on January 23, 2008 with the Atlanta Falcons. In his first season with the Falcons, Smith turned the team around from being 4-12 in 2007 to winning a Wild-Card berth with an 11-5 record. That turnaround earned Smith the NFL Coach of the Year award in his first season in charge of the team.
Featured Player
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Matt Ryan
- Quarterback
- 6-4
- 220 lbs
- 24
- 17/5/1985
- Boston College
- One season
Matt Ryan was the third overall pick in the 2008 NFL Draft, and his addition helped the Falcons engineer one of the most impressive turnarounds in NFL history. Ryan tossed a 62-yard touchdown pass to Michael Jenkins with his very first NFL throw and did not look back from there, helping the Falcons win 11 games and make the playoffs. By the end of his first season, Ryan had been voted NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year.
Team Info
The Falcons became the 15th team in the NFL when they began playing in 1966 and the early years were a struggle as Atlanta won just six games in their first three seasons. Atlanta has reached the playoffs just seven times in their history. The closest the Falcons came to NFL glory was in 1999 when they went on a Cinderella run to Super Bowl XXXIII before losing to the Denver Broncos in the final. They threatened to return to the title game again in 2004 before losing 27-10 to Philadelphia Eagles in the NFC Championship game. The Falcons have slumped since then, but started afresh at the beginning of the 2008 season with a new head coach in Mike Smith, quarterback Matt Ryan and running back Michael Turner. The new look did the team good as they managed 11 wins in 2008, grabbing a Wild-Card playoff berth and promising much for the future with a young nucleus.
