The Atlanta Falcons – History, Super Bowls & Head Coaches
In this article, we have mentioned about Atlanta Falcons, its head coaches, and about present head coach.
Atlanta Falcons is an American professional gridiron football team established in Atlanta that participates in the National Football League’s (NFL) National Football Conference (NFC) (NFL). Between the time frame 1999 to 2017 the Falcons won two NFC titles. The Falcons emerged as an expansion team in 1966, and they have now had 18 head coaches in their history.
Introduction
The American Football League (AFL) hosted two preseason games in Atlanta for the very first time in the year 1962. The AFL hosted another exhibition two years later, this time featuring the New York Jets against the San Diego Chargers. After the establishment of Atlanta-Fulton County Stadium in 1965, the city of Atlanta deemed the moment had arrived to embrace professional football. On June 30, 1965, Rozelle handed up ownership of the Atlanta Falcons to 40-year-old Rankin Smith Sr., an Executive Vice President of Life Insurance Company of Georgia. The Atlanta expansion club was the 15th NFL franchise and gained the first overall entry in the 1966 NFL Draft and the last in each of the first five rounds.
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Who are the Atlanta Falcons?
The Atlanta Falcons are an American professional football team rooted in Atlanta. The Falcons are members of the National Football League’s (NFL) National Football Conference (NFC) South division. The Falcons became an expansion team in 1965 after the NFL granted then-owner Rankin Smith a franchise to dissuade him from pursuing the rival American Football League (AFL).
The Falcons have a 379-487-6 record in their 55-year history, they have also won division titles in 1980, 1998, 2004, 2010, 2012, and 2016. The Falcons have contested two Super Bowls, the first throughout the 1998 season in Super Bowl XXXIII, wherein they suffered a loss by 34-19 to the Denver Broncos, and the second 18 years later in Super Bowl LI, wherein they again lost 34-28 in overtime to the New England Patriots.
Mercedes-Benz Stadium, which opened for the 2017 season, is the Falcons’ official home field; the team’s operations and practice facilities are located on a 50-acre (20 ha) property in Flowery Branch, northeast of Atlanta in Hall County.
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The Atlanta Falcons have had 18 head coaches throughout their history:
| Coach | Years | Record |
| Norb Hecker | 1966–1968 | 4–26–1 (.145) |
| Norm Van Brocklin | 1968–1974 | 39–48–3 (.450) |
| Marion Campbell | 1974–1976 | 6–19 (.240) |
| Pat Peppler | 1976 | 3–6 (.333) |
| Leeman Bennett | 1977–1982 | 46–41 (.529) |
| Dan Henning | 1983–1986 | 22–41–1 (.352) |
| Marion Campbell | 1987–1989 | 11–36 (.234) |
| Jim Hanifan | 1989 | 0–4 (.000) |
| Jerry Glanville | 1990–1993 | 27–37 (.422) |
| June Jones | 1994–1996 | 19–29 (.396) |
| Dan Reeves | 1997–2003 | 49–59–1 (.454) |
| Wade Phillips | 2003 | 2–1 (.667) |
| Jim Mora | 2004–2006 | 26–22 (.542) |
| Bobby Petrino | 2007 | 3–10 (.231) |
| Emmitt Thomas | 2007 | 1–2 (.333) |
| Mike Smith | 2008–2014 | 66–46 (.589) |
| Dan Quinn | 2015–2020 | 43–42 (.506) |
| Raheem Morris | 2020 | 4–7 (.364) |
| Arthur Smith | 2021–present | 14–20 (.412) |
Arthur Smith: Present head coach
On January 15, 2021, Arthur Smith was announced as the 18th head coach in Atlanta Falcon’s history, taking over the organization after serving as the Tennessee Titans offensive coordinator for the two preceding seasons (2019-2020). During that time, Smith directed one of the NFL’s best offenses, with the Titans as the league’s leaders in red-zone touchdown percentage (75.2), points per game (27.9), and overall offense (5th) (379.6). He commanded the NFL’s second-best running attack, which averaged 153.5 yards per game on the ground. Atlanta scored 7-10 in his first season as head coach, claiming seven of nine games decided by one possession after winning two of ten such games the preceding season.
Raheem Morris
Morris was signed as the Atlanta Falcons’ assistant head coach/defensive back on January 26, 2015. Morris was promoted to wide receivers coach on January 25, 2016, and was no longer defensive backs coach. Morris was promoted as a secondary coach on November 4, 2019. Morris was advanced to defensive coordinator for the 2020 NFL season on December 27, 2019. Morris was designated interim head coach on October 12, 2020, after Dan Quinn was fired following a 0-5 start to the season.
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Dan Quinn
Daniel Patrick Quinn was appointed head coach of the Atlanta Falcons following six seasons as an assistant coach. Quinn’s biggest successful season with the Falcons came in 2016, when he guided the club to Super Bowl LI, a feat that was overshadowed by the Falcons squandering the highest lead in Super Bowl history. Atlanta would only make the playoffs under Quinn again, triggering his departure in early 2020.
Mike Smith
Mike Smith has been the former head football coach of the Atlanta Falcons of the National Football League from 2008 to 2014. During his term as Falcons head coach, Smith became the franchise’s winningest head coach in terms of victories, in addition to receiving the Associated Press’s NFL Coach of the Year Award in 2008 and the Sporting News NFL Coach of the Year Award in 2008, 2010, and 2012.