The Atlanta Falcons are a professional American football team based in Atlanta, Georgia. They are a member of the South Division of the National Football Conference (NFC) in the National Football League (NFL). The Falcons were founded on June 30, 1965, with the NFL awarding Atlanta a football team to prevent the franchise from joining the rival American Football League. NFL commissioner Pete Rozelle granted ownership of the team to businessman Rankin Smith, beginning play in the 1966 season as an expansion team.[1][2] The name "Falcons" was suggested by high school teacher Julia Elliott through a 1965 contest.[3] Smith remained as the owner of the Falcons until his death in 1997, with ownership of the team then transferring to his son Taylor. Taylor Smith reached a preliminary agreement with businessman Arthur Blank to purchase the team on December 6, 2001. The sale was finalized on February 2, 2002, following a unanimous vote by NFL owners.[4] Since the team's inception, it has been based in Atlanta, playing their home games at the Mercedes-Benz Stadium since 2017.[5] They previously played home games at the Atlanta–Fulton County Stadium (1966–1991) and the Georgia Dome (1992–2016).[6][7] The Falcons began play in the Eastern Conference of the NFL, before moving to the Coastal division in the Western Conference. Following the 1970 NFL realignment, the team moved to the NFC West division.[8] The team moved for the third and final time to the NFC South division following the 2002 NFL realignment.[9]
Over their 58 seasons in the NFL, the Falcons have accumulated a record of 390 wins, 503 losses, and 6 ties, which is the fifth-worst all-time regular season record among active franchises in terms of win–loss percentage.[10] They have also made the playoffs fourteen times and have the seventh-worst playoff record in terms of win-loss percentage with 10 wins and 14 losses.[10] The Falcons appeared in two Super Bowl championships—Super Bowl XXXIII and Super Bowl LI—losing to the Denver Broncos and the New England Patriots, respectively. The Falcons have won the NFC Championship twice and a division title six times, winning the NFC West twice (1978 and 1998) and the NFC South four times (2004, 2010, 2012 and 2016).[11] The team currently has seventeen winning seasons, four tied seasons, and thirty-six losing seasons.[12]
- ^ "This Day In Sports: The City Of Atlanta Gets Its NFL Wings". ESPN. June 30, 2010. Archived from the original on July 15, 2022. Retrieved December 31, 2023.
- ^ "Team History" (PDF). 2022 Atlanta Falcons Media Guide. NFL. Archived (PDF) from the original on March 27, 2023. Retrieved March 27, 2023.
- ^ Johnston, Andy (January 31, 2017). "Teacher helped name the Atlanta Falcons". WSB-TV. Archived from the original on July 13, 2018. Retrieved December 31, 2023.
- ^ Rhlm, Kris (February 17, 2022). "'We need more rings': Arthur Blank reflects on 20 years of ownership, Falcons future". Atlanta Falcons. Archived from the original on June 6, 2023. Retrieved December 31, 2023.
- ^ "Mercedes-Benz Stadium History". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Archived from the original on June 2, 2023. Retrieved December 31, 2023.
- ^ Bradley, Mark (February 20, 2016). "Atlanta's stadium farewells: Fun and flops". The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. ISSN 1539-7459. Archived from the original on October 6, 2022. Retrieved December 31, 2023.
- ^ Odum, Charles (January 6, 2017). "Falcons' 25-year stay in Georgia Dome coming to an end". Savannah Morning News. Archived from the original on December 31, 2023. Retrieved December 31, 2023.
- ^ Anderson, Dave (February 27, 2000). "Sports of The Times; The Woman Who Aligned the N.F.C. Teams". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on October 24, 2023. Retrieved January 2, 2024.
- ^ "New alignment takes effect in 2002". ESPN. Associated Press. May 22, 2001. Archived from the original on February 3, 2020. Retrieved January 2, 2024.
- ^ a b "List of all the Pro Football Franchises". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Archived from the original on September 22, 2020. Retrieved December 31, 2023.
- ^ "Team Facts". Pro Football Hall of Fame. Archived from the original on June 1, 2023. Retrieved December 31, 2023.
- ^ "Atlanta Falcons Team Records, Leaders, and League Ranks". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Archived from the original on November 8, 2023. Retrieved December 31, 2023.