1997_Atlanta_Falcons_season
1997 Atlanta Falcons season
32nd season in franchise history; final one under ownership of Rankin Smith
The 1997 Atlanta Falcons season was the franchise's 32nd season in the National Football League (NFL). It was their first season with new head coach Dan Reeves, who had been hired on January 21.
Quick Facts Atlanta Falcons season, Owner ...
| 1997 Atlanta Falcons season | |
|---|---|
| Owner | Rankin Smith (died on October 26, 1997) |
| Head coach | Dan Reeves |
| Home field | Georgia Dome |
| Results | |
| Record | 7–9 |
| Division place | 3rd NFC West |
| Playoff finish | Did not qualify |
| Pro Bowlers | QB Chris Chandler MLB Jessie Tuggle |
| |
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For the season, they added a new logo and added the numerals and socks on the road jerseys are switched from black to red.
The season was marked with tragedy, as team owner Rankin Smith died on October 26, 1997. The following week, the team wore a commemorative patch on their jerseys for the remainder of the season. The season was the last time Falcons started 0–5 until 2020.
NFL draft
Main article: 1997 NFL draft
More information Round, Pick ...
| 1997 Atlanta Falcons draft | |||||
| Round | Pick | Player | Position | College | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 11 | Michael Booker | Cornerback | Nebraska | |
| 2 | 32 | Nathan Davis | Defensive end | Indiana | |
| 2 | 41 | Byron Hanspard | Running back | Texas Tech | |
| 3 | 70 | O. J. Santiago | Tight end | Kent State | |
| 4 | 100 | Henri Crockett | Linebacker | Florida State | |
| 5 | 133 | Marcus Wimberly | Defensive back | Miami (FL) | |
| 6 | 180 | Calvin Collins | Guard | Texas A&M | |
| 7 | 204 | Tony Graziani | Quarterback | Oregon | |
| 7 | 222 | Chris Bayne | Safety | Fresno State | |
| Made roster | |||||
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Staff
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Front office
Head coaches
Offensive coaches
|
Defensive coaches
Special teams coaches
Strength and conditioning
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Roster
Quarterbacks
Running backs
Wide receivers
Tight ends
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Offensive linemen
Defensive linemen
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Linebackers
Defensive backs
Special teams
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Reserve lists
53 active, 4 inactive, 4 practice squad
| ||||||
Schedule
More information Week, Date ...
| Week | Date | Opponent | Result | Record | Venue | Recap | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | August 31 | at Detroit Lions | L 17–28 | 0–1 | Pontiac Silverdome | Recap | |
| 2 | September 7 | Carolina Panthers | L 6–9 | 0–2 | Georgia Dome | Recap | |
| 3 | September 14 | Oakland Raiders | L 31–36 | 0–3 | Georgia Dome | Recap | |
| 4 | September 21 | at San Francisco 49ers | L 7–34 | 0–4 | 3Com Park | Recap | |
| 5 | September 28 | Denver Broncos | L 21–29 | 0–5 | Georgia Dome | Recap | |
| 6 | Bye | ||||||
| 7 | October 12 | at New Orleans Saints | W 23–17 | 1–5 | Louisiana Superdome | Recap | |
| 8 | October 19 | San Francisco 49ers | L 28–35 | 1–6 | Georgia Dome | Recap | |
| 9 | October 26 | at Carolina Panthers | L 12–21 | 1–7 | Ericsson Stadium | Recap | |
| 10 | November 2 | St. Louis Rams | W 34–31 | 2–7 | Georgia Dome | Recap | |
| 11 | November 9 | Tampa Bay Buccaneers | L 10–31 | 2–8 | Georgia Dome | Recap | |
| 12 | November 16 | at St. Louis Rams | W 27–21 | 3–8 | Trans World Dome | Recap | |
| 13 | November 23 | New Orleans Saints | W 20–3 | 4–8 | Georgia Dome | Recap | |
| 14 | November 30 | at Seattle Seahawks | W 24–17 | 5–8 | Kingdome | Recap | |
| 15 | December 7 | at San Diego Chargers | W 14–3 | 6–8 | Qualcomm Stadium | Recap | |
| 16 | December 14 | Philadelphia Eagles | W 20–17 | 7–8 | Georgia Dome | Recap | |
| 17 | December 21 | at Arizona Cardinals | L 26–29 | 7–9 | Sun Devil Stadium | Recap | |
| Note: Intra-division opponents are in bold text. | |||||||
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Week 7 at Saints
See also: 1997 New Orleans Saints season
More information Period, Total ...
| Period | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Falcons | 10 | 6 | 7 | 0 | 23 |
| Saints | 0 | 3 | 0 | 14 | 17 |
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More information Game information ...
| Game information | ||
|---|---|---|
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Week Seven: Atlanta Falcons (0–5) at New Orleans Saints (2–4)
at Louisiana Superdome • New Orleans, Louisiana
- Date: October 12
- Game time: 1:00 p.m. EDT
- Game weather: Indoors (dome)
- Game attendance: 65,619
- Pro-Football-Reference.com, The Football Database
More information Scoring summary, Quarter ...
| Scoring summary | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Standings
More information NFC West, W ...
| NFC West | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| W | L | T | PCT | PF | PA | STK | |
| (1) San Francisco 49ers | 13 | 3 | 0 | .813 | 375 | 265 | L1 |
| Carolina Panthers | 7 | 9 | 0 | .438 | 265 | 314 | L2 |
| Atlanta Falcons | 7 | 9 | 0 | .438 | 320 | 361 | L1 |
| New Orleans Saints | 6 | 10 | 0 | .375 | 237 | 327 | L1 |
| St. Louis Rams | 5 | 11 | 0 | .313 | 299 | 359 | W1 |
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- "1997 Atlanta Falcons draftees". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved December 14, 2013.
- "1997 Atlanta Falcons starters and roster". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved December 6, 2014.
- NFL 2001 Record and Fact Book, Workman Publishing Co, New York, NY, ISBN 0-7611-2480-2, p. 290
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