1968 Atlanta Falcons season

Last updated

1968 Atlanta Falcons season
Owner Rankin M. Smith Sr.
General manager Frank E. Wall
Head coach Norb Hecker (0–3)
Norm Van Brocklin (2–9)
Home field Atlanta Stadium
Results
Record2–12
Division place4th Coastal
Playoff finishDid not qualify
Pro Bowlers LB Tommy Nobis

The 1968 Atlanta Falcons season was the franchise's third year in the National Football League (NFL). After going an NFL-worst 1-12-1 last year, the Falcons slightly improved on that record by going 2-12, but they still finished tied for the worst record in the whole NFL and failed to qualify for the playoffs for the third consecutive season.

Contents

Offseason

NFL Draft

1968 Atlanta Falcons draft
RoundPickPlayerPositionCollegeNotes
13 Claude Humphrey  *   Defensive end Tennessee State
      Made roster        Pro Football Hall of Fame     *   Made at least one Pro Bowl during career

[1]

Personnel

Staff

1968 Atlanta Falcons staff
Front office

Head coaches

Offensive coaches

Defensive coaches



Roster

1968 Atlanta Falcons final roster
Quarterbacks

Running backs

Wide receivers

Tight ends

Offensive linemen

Defensive linemen

Linebackers

Defensive backs

Special teams

Reserve lists
  • 34 Junior Coffey RB (IR Tooltip Injured reserve) Injury icon 2.svg
  • 20 Bob Riggle S (IR Tooltip Injured reserve) Injury icon 2.svg


Rookies in italics

Regular season

Schedule

WeekDateOpponentResultRecordVenueAttendance
1September 14at Minnesota Vikings L 7–470–1 Metropolitan Stadium 45,563
2September 22 Baltimore Colts L 20–280–2 Atlanta Stadium 50,428
3September 29at San Francisco 49ers L 13–280–3 Kezar Stadium 27,471
4October 6 Green Bay Packers L 7–380–4Atlanta Stadium58,850
5October 13 New York Giants W 24–211–4Atlanta Stadium49,962
6October 20at Los Angeles Rams L 14–271–5 Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum 54,443
7October 27at Cleveland Browns L 7–301–6 Cleveland Municipal Stadium 67,723
8November 3 Pittsburgh Steelers L 21–411–7Atlanta Stadium47,727
9November 10 Los Angeles Rams L 10–171–8Atlanta Stadium53,979
10November 17at Chicago Bears W 16–132–8 Wrigley Field 44,214
11November 24at St. Louis Cardinals L 12–172–9 Busch Memorial Stadium 43,246
12December 1at Baltimore Colts L 0–442–10 Memorial Stadium 60,238
13December 8 Detroit Lions L 7–242–11Atlanta Stadium49,437
14December 15 San Francisco 49ers L 12–142–12Atlanta Stadium44,977
Note: Intra-division opponents are in bold text.

Standings

NFL Coastal
WLTPCTDIVCONFPFPASTK
Baltimore Colts 1310.9296–010–0402144W8
Los Angeles Rams 1031.7693–2–16–3–1312200L2
San Francisco 49ers 761.5382–3–14–5–1303310W1
Atlanta Falcons 2120.1430–61–9170389L4

Note: Tie games were not officially counted in the standings until 1972.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Atlanta Falcons</span> National Football League franchise in Atlanta, Georgia

The Atlanta Falcons are a professional American football team based in Atlanta. The Falcons compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) South division. The Falcons were founded on June 30, 1965, and joined the NFL in 1966 as an expansion team, after the NFL offered then-owner Rankin Smith a franchise to keep him from joining the rival American Football League (AFL).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Norm Van Brocklin</span> American football player and coach (1926–1983)

Norman Mack Van Brocklin, nicknamed "the Dutchman", was an American football quarterback and coach who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 12 seasons. He spent his first nine seasons with the Los Angeles Rams and his final three with the Philadelphia Eagles. Following his playing career, he was the inaugural head coach of the Minnesota Vikings from 1961 to 1966 and the second head coach of the Atlanta Falcons from 1968 to 1974.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mike Mularkey</span> American football player and coach (born 1961)

Michael Rene Mularkey is a former American football coach and tight end in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the University of Florida, and was drafted in the ninth round of the 1983 NFL Draft by the San Francisco 49ers and lasted until the final round of cuts. Mularkey then signed with the Minnesota Vikings with whom he played for six seasons before playing another three with the Pittsburgh Steelers.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dan Reeves</span> American football player and coach (1944–2022)

Daniel Edward Reeves was an American professional football running back and coach in the National Football League (NFL). During his 38 years in the NFL, Reeves participated in nine Super Bowls, the third most for an individual. He was a head coach for 23 seasons, a position he held with the Denver Broncos from 1981 to 1992, the New York Giants from 1993 to 1996, and the Atlanta Falcons from 1997 to 2003. As a player, he spent his eight-season career with the Dallas Cowboys, who signed him as an undrafted free agent in 1965.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jack Christiansen</span> American football player and coach (1928–1986)

John LeRoy Christiansen was an American professional football player who became a college and pro coach. He played professionally in the National Football League (NFL) for the Detroit Lions as a safety and return specialist from 1951 to 1958. He helped lead the Lions to three NFL championships in 1952, 1953, and 1957 and was a first-team All-NFL player in six of his eight years in the league. He led the NFL in interceptions in 1953 and 1957 and in punt returns for touchdown in 1951, 1952, 1954, and 1956. His eight career punt returns for touchdowns was an NFL record until 1989 and remains the fourth best in league history. He was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1970.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Roddy White</span> American football player (born 1981)

Sharod Lamor "Roddy" White is an American former professional football player who spent his entire career as a wide receiver with the Atlanta Falcons of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the UAB Blazers, and was drafted by the Falcons in the first round of the 2005 NFL Draft.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Matt Ryan (American football)</span> American football player (born 1985)

Matthew Thomas Ryan is an American football quarterback who is a free agent. Nicknamed "Matty Ice", Ryan spent his first 14 seasons with the Atlanta Falcons and holds the franchise records for passing yards, passing touchdowns, attempts, completions, passer rating, and wins. He played college football at Boston College, where he won the Manning and Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Awards as a senior, and was selected by the Falcons third overall in the 2008 NFL Draft. He is also an analyst for CBS Sports.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">William White (American football)</span> American football player (1966–2022)

William Eugene White was an American professional football player who was a safety for eleven seasons in the National Football League (NFL). He played for the Detroit Lions, Kansas City Chiefs, and Atlanta Falcons from 1988 to 1998.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Julio Jones</span> American football player (born 1989)

Quintorris Lopez "Julio" Jones Jr. is an American football wide receiver for the Philadelphia Eagles of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Alabama, and was selected by the Atlanta Falcons in the first round of the 2011 NFL Draft. He is regarded as one of the greatest receivers of the 2010s.

The 1994 Atlanta Falcons season was the franchise's 29th season in the National Football League (NFL).

The 1967 Atlanta Falcons season was the franchise's second year in the National Football League (NFL). Unable to improve on their 3-11, second-to-last place finish from their inaugural season, the Falcons finished with the worst record in the whole NFL, at 1-12-1. They failed to qualify for the playoffs for the second consecutive season.

The 1996 Atlanta Falcons season was the franchise’s 31st season in the National Football League (NFL). The Falcons were unable to match their previous season’s output of 9–7 and failed to reach the playoffs. Atlanta started the season 0–8, going winless until November. Two of the team’s three wins were over the equally inept New Orleans Saints, who also finished 3–13.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dan Quinn (American football)</span> American football coach (born 1970)

Daniel Patrick Quinn is an American football coach who is the defensive coordinator for the Dallas Cowboys of the National Football League (NFL). He came to prominence as the defensive coordinator of the Seattle Seahawks from 2013 to 2014, serving as the play-caller for the team's Legion of Boom secondary. Under Quinn, Seattle led the league in defense and made two consecutive Super Bowl appearances, winning the franchise's first in Super Bowl XLVIII. This success led to Quinn being named head coach of the Atlanta Falcons, where he served for six seasons.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cordarrelle Patterson</span> American football player (born 1991)

Cordarrelle Patterson, nicknamed "Flash", is an American football player for the Atlanta Falcons of the National Football League (NFL). A versatile utility player, he plays running back, wide receiver, return specialist, and occasionally on defense. Patterson played college football at Hutchinson Community College before transferring to Tennessee, where he earned First-team All-SEC honors. He was selected by the Minnesota Vikings in the first round of the 2013 NFL Draft. He has also been a member of the Oakland Raiders, New England Patriots with whom he won Super Bowl LIII, and the Chicago Bears.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Grady Jarrett</span> American football player (born 1993)

Grady Jarrett is an American football defensive end for the Atlanta Falcons of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Clemson.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Calvin Ridley</span> American football player (born 1994)

Calvin Orin Ridley is an American football wide receiver for the Jacksonville Jaguars of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Alabama, where he was a part of the national championship-winning teams in 2015 and 2017. Drafted by the Atlanta Falcons in the first round of the 2018 NFL Draft, he was named to the PFWA All-Rookie Team and earned second-team All-Pro honors in 2020.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Austin Hooper</span> American football player (born 1994)

Austin Manuel Hooper is an American football tight end for the Las Vegas Raiders of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Stanford, and was selected by the Atlanta Falcons in the third round of the 2016 NFL Draft.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Keanu Neal</span> American football player (born 1995)

Keanu Neal is an American football safety for the Pittsburgh Steelers of the National Football League (NFL). He was selected by the Atlanta Falcons with the 17th overall pick in the 2016 NFL Draft. He played college football at Florida.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">J. D. McKissic</span> American football player (born 1993)

Joshua Dobbie McKissic is an American football running back who is a free agent. He played college football at Arkansas State, where set the Sun Belt Conference record for most career receptions with 289. McKissic signed with the Atlanta Falcons as an undrafted free agent in 2016 and has also played for the Seattle Seahawks, Detroit Lions, and Washington Football Team / Commanders.

References

  1. "1968 Atlanta Falcons draftees". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved October 24, 2014.