Established: 1966
Home Field: Georgia Dome – Atlanta, Georgia
Owner(s): Arthur Blank
General Manager: Thomas Dimitroff
Head Coach: Mike Smith

The Falcons were established in 1965 as an expansion team in the NFL.  Atlantans began to push for a football team upon the completion of the Altanta-Fulton County Stadium.  The state applied for a team in the AFL and the NFL, but it was on June 30, 1965 that the state ultimately chose to be a part of the NFL.  Julia Elliot, a high school teacher from Griffin, gave the team their name after winning a contest in 1965.

The Falcons were awarded their first NFL season in 1966 and got off to a pretty rocky start.  It wasn’t until the 1970s that they finished a season with a winning record. They continued to battle through their seasons, at one point becoming the ‘2 Legit 2 Quit’ Falcons after several of the players appeared in the MC Hammer video.  Though the team made the playoffs five times, it wasn’t until 1998 that they experienced a really great season.  They posted a 14-2 record and made it to Super Bowl XXXIII after upsetting the heavily favored Minnesota Vikings.  They went on to lose to the Denver Broncos 34-19.  Since, the team has made the playoffs three times.

The Falcons are headquartered in Flowery Beach, Georgia and play all of their home games in the Georgia Dome.  They are part of the NFC South.

Championships

League Championships: None
Conference Championships: NFC: 1998

Division Championships

NFC West: 1980, 1998
NCF South: 2004

Falcons Trivia

• Tommy Nobis (LB Texas) was the Falcons’ very first draft pick.
• Freddy the Falcon is the name of the Falcons’ mascot
• There are currently zero Atlanta players in the Football Hall of Fame.