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).
Steven Joseph Bartkowski is an American former professional football player who was a quarterback in the National Football League (NFL) for the Atlanta Falcons (1975–1985), Washington Redskins (1985) and the Los Angeles Rams (1986). He was a two-time Pro Bowl selection. Bartkowski played college football for the California Golden Bears, earning consensus All-American honors as a senior in 1974. He was selected by the Falcons with the first overall pick of the 1975 NFL draft.
Asante T. Samuel Sr. is an American former professional football player who was a cornerback in the National Football League (NFL). He was born in Accra, Ghana and raised in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. He played college football for the UCF Knights and was selected by the New England Patriots in the fourth round of the 2003 NFL draft. Samuel also played for the Philadelphia Eagles and Atlanta Falcons. He led the NFL twice in interceptions, in 2006 and 2009, and is considered one of the all-time greatest Patriots and cornerbacks. He is the father of Asante Samuel Jr., a cornerback who was drafted by the Los Angeles Chargers.
Mark Lee Simoneau is an American former professional football player who was a linebacker for 10 seasons in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Kansas State Wildcats, earning consensus All-American honors in 1999. He was selected by the Atlanta Falcons in the third round of the 2000 NFL draft, and played for the Falcons, Philadelphia Eagles, New Orleans Saints and Kansas City Chiefs of the NFL.
The 2001 NFL draft was the 66th draft annual of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible professional football players. The draft, which is officially referred to as the "NFL Player Selection Meeting", was held at the Theater at Madison Square Garden in New York City, New York on April 21–22, 2001.
The 2006 NFL draft, the 71st in league history, took place in New York City, New York, at Radio City Music Hall on April 29 and April 30, 2006. For the 27th consecutive year, the draft was telecast on ESPN and ESPN2, with additional coverage offered by ESPNU and, for the first time, by NFL Network. Having signed a contract with the Houston Texans on the evening before the draft, Mario Williams, a defensive end from North Carolina State, became the draft's first pick. The selection surprised many commentators, who predicted that the Texans would draft Southern California running back Reggie Bush or Texas quarterback Vince Young. Ohio State produced the most first round selections (five), while Southern California produced the most overall selections (eleven). Twenty-seven compensatory and supplemental compensatory selections were distributed amongst seventeen teams; Tampa Bay, Baltimore, and Tennessee each held three compensatory picks. The league also held a supplemental draft after the regular draft and before the regular season.
George James Kunz is an American former professional football player who was an offensive lineman in the National Football League (NFL) from 1969 to 1980. He played college football with the Notre Dame Fighting Irish, earning consensus All-American honors in 1968.
David Mark Archer is an American former professional football player who was a quarterback for six seasons in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Iowa State Cyclones. Undrafted in the 1984 NFL draft, he played in the NFL from 1984 to 1989 for the Atlanta Falcons, Washington Redskins, San Diego Chargers, and Philadelphia Eagles.
Christopher Jerrod Hinton is an American former professional football player who was an offensive tackle for 13 seasons in the National Football League (NFL), primarily with the Indianapolis Colts franchise. In addition to his seven seasons with the Colts, he was a member of the Atlanta Falcons for four seasons and the Minnesota Vikings for two seasons.
David Hampton is a former professional American football running back in the National Football League (NFL) for the Green Bay Packers, Atlanta Falcons, and Philadelphia Eagles.
Ronald Matthew Solt is an American former professional football player who was a guard in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Maryland Terrapins and was selected in the first round of the 1984 NFL draft with the 19th overall pick. Solt played in the NFL for the Indianapolis Colts and the Philadelphia Eagles.
Tony Derrell Smith is an American former professional football player who was a running back for three seasons with the Atlanta Falcons of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Southern Miss Golden Eagles and was selected by the Falcons in the first round of the 1992 NFL draft with the 19th overall pick. He also played for the Toronto Argonauts of the Canadian Football League (CFL).
Evan Cooper is a former American football player. He played college football as a defensive back at the University of Michigan from 1980 to 1983. He played professional football in the National Football League (NFL) as a safety for the Philadelphia Eagles from 1984 to 1987 and the Atlanta Falcons from 1988 to 1989.
Michael Allen Ruether was an American professional football player who was an offensive lineman and tight end in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Texas Longhorns, earning first-team All-American honors as a lineman in 1983. During his 10-year professional career, he played primarily with the NFL's Atlanta Falcons and went to Super Bowl XXIV with the Denver Broncos. He also played for the Los Angeles Express and the St. Louis Cardinals and spent a year with the Minnesota Vikings.
The 1978 Philadelphia Eagles season was the franchise's 46th season in the National Football League (NFL). The Eagles reached the postseason for the first time since their championship-winning season in 1960, which ended the longest postseason drought in the franchise's history and one of the longest in the history of the NFL. The Eagles ended their playoff drought by winning their final game in the regular season and needing either the Minnesota Vikings or Green Bay Packers to lose - both teams ended up losing and thus earned a wild card entry. This was also the first season since 1966 in which the franchise finished the season with a winning record. They were knocked out in the Wild Card by the Atlanta Falcons.
Major Donel Everett is a former American football professional running back in the National Football League (NFL) for five seasons with the Philadelphia Eagles, Cleveland Browns and Atlanta Falcons.
The 1972 Philadelphia Eagles season was the franchise's 40th season in the National Football League. They failed to improve and declined on their previous output of 6–7–1, winning only two games. The team failed to qualify for the playoffs for the twelfth consecutive season.
Andre Clyde Dillard is an American professional football offensive tackle for the Green Bay Packers of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Washington State, and was drafted by the Philadelphia Eagles 22nd overall in the 2019 NFL draft.
Milton Jackson was an American football coach for 26 seasons. He had different coaching positions for the California Golden Bears, Oregon Ducks, UCLA Bruins, San Francisco 49ers, Buffalo Bills, Philadelphia Eagles, Houston Oilers, Indianapolis Colts, Los Angeles Rams, Atlanta Falcons, New York Giants, Seattle Seahawks, and Baltimore Ravens. Also, he was drafted in the 7th round (170), by the San Francisco 49ers but did not play for them. Instead, he played for the San Jose Apaches, and Sacramento Capitols.
