1978 Atlanta Falcons season

Last updated

1978 Atlanta Falcons season
Owner Rankin M. Smith Sr.
General manager Eddie LeBaron
Head coach Leeman Bennett
Home field Fulton County Stadium
Results
Record9–7
Division place2nd NFC West
Playoff finishWon Wild Card Playoffs
(vs. Eagles) 14–13
Lost Divisional Playoffs
(at Cowboys) 20–27

The 1978 Atlanta Falcons season was the Falcons' 13th season. After losing four of their first six games, Atlanta rebounded to win seven of their last ten, and their 9-7 record was the third best in a weak NFC. The NFC West runners-up thus not only secured their first-ever postseason berth in franchise history, but earned a home playoff game under the expanded ten team format.

Contents

Hosting the Philadelphia Eagles in their first ever playoff game, the Falcons scored two touchdowns in their final fourteen minutes to pull out a 14–13 win. In the divisional round, the Falcons were 14-point underdogs facing the Dallas Cowboys. Atlanta took a seven point lead into halftime, but the Cowboys came back to take a 27–20 lead. In their final drive, the Falcons fell inches short of a first down on the Cowboys' 32-yard line, as Dallas got the ball and ran down the clock.

NFL Draft

1978 Atlanta Falcons draft
RoundPickPlayerPositionCollegeNotes
113 Mike Kenn  *  Offensive tackle Michigan
243 Steve Stewart   Linebacker Minnesota
370 Stan Waldemore   Guard Nebraska
495 Brian Cabral  Linebacker Colorado
5125 Dennis Pearson   Wide receiver San Diego State
6152 Rodney Parker  Wide receiver Tennessee State
7167 Alfred Jackson  Wide receiver Texas
7179 James Wright   Tight end Texas Christian
8209David Adkins Linebacker Ohio State
8216David Williams  Offensive tackle Tennessee–Martin
9236 Tom Pridemore   Safety West Virginia
10257 Ricky Patton   Running back Jackson State
10263 Ray Strong  Running back UNLV
11293Scooter Reed  Defensive back Baylor
12320Daria Butler Linebacker Oklahoma State
      Made roster    *   Made at least one Pro Bowl during career

[1]

Personnel

Staff

1978 Atlanta Falcons staff

Front office

Head coaches

Offensive coaches

Defensive coaches



Roster

1978 Atlanta Falcons final roster
Quarterbacks

Running backs

Wide receivers

Tight ends

Offensive linemen

Defensive linemen

Linebackers

Defensive backs

Special teams

Reserve lists


Rookies in italics

Regular season

Schedule

WeekDateOpponentResultRecordVenueAttendance
1September 3 Houston Oilers W 20–141–0 Atlanta–Fulton County Stadium 57,328
2September 10at Los Angeles Rams L 0–101–1 Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum 46,201
3September 17 Cleveland Browns L 16–241–2Atlanta–Fulton County Stadium56,648
4September 24at Tampa Bay Buccaneers L 9–141–3 Tampa Stadium 58,073
5October 1 New York Giants W 23–202–3Atlanta–Fulton County Stadium47,765
6October 8at Pittsburgh Steelers L 7–312–4 Three Rivers Stadium 48,202
7October 15 Detroit Lions W 14–03–4Atlanta–Fulton County Stadium51,172
8October 22at San Francisco 49ers W 20–174–4 Candlestick Park 44,235
9October 30 Los Angeles Rams W 15–75–4Atlanta–Fulton County Stadium57,250
10November 5 San Francisco 49ers W 21–106–4Atlanta–Fulton County Stadium55,468
11November 12at New Orleans Saints W 20–177–4 Louisiana Superdome 70,323
12November 19at Chicago Bears L 7–137–5 Soldier Field 46,022
13November 26 New Orleans Saints W 20–178–5Atlanta–Fulton County Stadium55,121
14December 3at Cincinnati Bengals L 7–378–6 Riverfront Stadium 25,336
15December 10 Washington Redskins W 20–179–6Atlanta–Fulton County Stadium54,176
16December 17at St. Louis Cardinals L 21–429–7 Busch Memorial Stadium 40,022
Note: Intra-division opponents are in bold text.

[2]

Standings

NFC West
WLTPCTDIVCONFPFPASTK
Los Angeles Rams (1)1240.7504–210–2316245W1
Atlanta Falcons (4)970.5635–18–4240290L1
New Orleans Saints 790.4383–36–6281298W1
San Francisco 49ers 2140.1250–61–11219350L1

Game summaries

[3]

Week 1

Week 1: Houston Oilers at Atlanta Falcons
Period1234Total
Oilers707014
Falcons0143320

at Fulton County Stadium • Atlanta, Georgia

Game information

Week 2

Week 2: Atlanta Falcons at Los Angeles Rams
Period1234Total
Falcons00000
Rams030710

at Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum • Los Angeles, California

Game information

Week 3

Week 3: Cleveland Browns at Atlanta Falcons – Game summary
Period1234Total
Browns0170724
Falcons370616

at Atlanta–Fulton County Stadium, Atlanta

  • Date: September 17
  • Game time: 1:00 p.m. EDT
  • Game weather: 79 °F (26 °C), relative humidity 70%, round (wind) 6 mph (9.7 km/h)
  • Game attendance: 56,648
  • Referee: Gene Barth
  • TV announcers (NBC): Jim Simpson (play–by–play) and Paul Warfield (color commentator)
Game information

Week 4

Week 5

Week 6

Week 7 vs. Detroit Lions

Steve Bartkowski threw a 24-yard touchdown pass to Billy Ryckman early in the second quarter and Bubba Bean erupted for a 25-yard touchdown run in the final minutes of the game as the Falcons got a critical win to stay alive in the NFC Playoff hunt. The Falcons defense also played a part in their win with two brilliant goal line stands. It was the first home shutout in Falcons History. The Lions' woeful offense could produce only 22 rushing yards.

Week 8 vs San Francisco 49ers

Atlanta erased a 17-7 deficit in the final 5:38 of the game, beating San Francisco on Tim Mazzetti's last-second, 29-yard field goal. Steve Bartkowski directed the comeback, hitting a 71-yard bomb to set up a 21-yard Mazzetti field goal, completing a 59-yard scoring pass to Billy Ryckman with 1:52 remaining and then finding Tim Mitchell with a 19-yard reception to set up a winning kick. This game was broadcast by CBS with announcers Vin Scully, George Allen and Jim Brown at the game.

Week 9

Week 9: Los Angeles Rams at Atlanta Falcons
Period1234Total
Rams07007
Falcons060915

at Fulton County Stadium • Atlanta, Georgia

Game information

Week 10 vs. San Francisco 49ers

Steve Bartkowski, who suffered a separate shoulder last Monday, ran for one touchdown and threw a 37-yard scoring pass to Wallace Francis as Atlanta spoiled the head coaching debutof the 49ers' Fred O'Connor who replaced the fired Pete McCulley on Tuesday. San Francisco's O.J. Simpson suffered a shoulder separation early in the second period. Simpson had carried 5 times for only 15 yards before the injury. Atlanta's win help keep their playoff hopes alive for a wild card berth at 6-4 the same record as the Cowboys and the Vikings.

Week 11

Week 12

Week 13

Week 14

Week 15

Week 16

Postseason

NFC Wild Card Game

Atlanta Falcons 14, Philadelphia Eagles 13
Period1234Total
Eagles607013
Falcons0001414

at Atlanta–Fulton County Stadium, Atlanta, Georgia

The Falcons won their first playoff game in team history after they overcame a 13–0 deficit by scoring 2 touchdowns in the final 5 minutes of the game.

NFC Divisional Playoff

Dallas Cowboys 27, Atlanta Falcons 20
Period1234Total
Falcons7130020
Cowboys1037727

at Texas Stadium, Irving, Texas

Dallas' "Doomsday Defense" limited Atlanta quarterback Steve Bartkowski to only 8 completions in 23 attempts and intercepted him 3 times en route to victory. After the Falcons led 20–13 at halftime, the Cowboys scored 14 unanswered points in the second half.

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References

  1. ↑ "1978 Atlanta Falcons draftees". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved October 22, 2014.
  2. ↑ "1978 Atlanta Falcons".
  3. ↑ "1978 Atlanta Falcons Statistics & Players". Pro-Football-Reference.com .
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