1974 Atlanta Falcons season
1974 Atlanta Falcons season | |
---|---|
Owner | Rankin M. Smith Sr. |
Head coach | Norm Van Brocklin (2–6) Marion Campbell (1–5) |
General manager | Norm Van Brocklin |
Home field | Atlanta Stadium |
Results | |
Record | 3–11 |
Division place | 4th NFC West |
Playoff finish | Did not qualify |
The 1974 Atlanta Falcons season was the franchise's ninth year in the National Football League (NFL). After coming close to their maiden postseason appearance the previous season and finishing with a best-to-date 9–5 record despite an upset loss to the Cardinals, the Falcons traded star cornerback Ken Reaves to the archrival New Orleans Saints to obtain in-demand guard Royce Smith, a former Georgia Bulldogs All-American,[1] in a widely criticized move (Reaves played only five games for New Orleans before he was cut; he signed with St. Louis, where he remained through his retirement in 1978). During the strike-affected pre-season, they beat the Eagles 23 to 7 in a rain-soaked match,[2] before losing to the Raiders, 28-16.[3] Soon afterwards the Falcons lost key offensive tackle Bill Sandeman for the entire season with a slipped disc in his back.[4]
Along with a form lapse from quarterback Bob Lee and an injury to running back Dave Hampton,[5] this destroyed the Falcons’ offense. The 1974 Falcons scored 111 points with a mere twelve touchdowns, the lowest total in franchise history, and the second lowest by any team in a fourteen-game NFL season[6] after the infamous “Zero Gang” offense of the 1977 Buccaneers who were shut out six times in fourteen games. Their failure to score more than seventeen points in any game has been equalled since only by the infamous offense of the 1992 Seahawks.
The Falcons sacked long-serving head coach Norman van Brocklin after being thrashed by the Miami Dolphins and having heard demands from fans to make that move. Three of his successors have suffered the same humiliation in the middle of a season: Marion Campbell (1976 and 1989), Dan Reeves (2003) and Dan Quinn (2020), and Bobby Petrino quit with three games remaining in 2007.[7][8]
The 1974 Falcons suffered through the humiliation of being the first Falcons team to be swept by the Saints since the teams became division rivals with the AFL-NFL merger. The Saints entered the season 1–9 all-time vs. the Falcons, with that win coming in the teams' first meeting in 1967. New Orleans did not sweep Atlanta again until 1983.
Offseason[]
NFL Draft[]
1974 Atlanta Falcons draft | |||||
Round | Pick | Player | Position | College | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
2 | 44 | Gerald Tinker | Wide receiver | Kent State | |
3 | 69 | Kim McQuilken | Quarterback | Lehigh | |
Made roster * Made at least one Pro Bowl during career |
Personnel[]
Staff[]
Front office
Head coaches
Offensive coaches
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Defensive coaches
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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
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Regular season[]
Schedule[]
Week | Date | Opponent | Result | Record | Venue | Attendance | Recap |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | September 15 | Dallas Cowboys | L 0–24 | 0–1 | Atlanta Stadium | 52,322 | Recap |
2 | September 22 | San Francisco 49ers | L 10–16 | 0–2 | Atlanta Stadium | 47,686 | Recap |
3 | September 29 | at New Orleans Saints | L 13–14 | 0–3 | Tulane Stadium | 62,273 | Recap |
4 | October 6 | at New York Giants | W 14–7 | 1–3 | Yale Bowl | 42,379 | Recap |
5 | October 13 | Chicago Bears | W 13–10 | 2–3 | Atlanta Stadium | 47,835 | Recap |
6 | October 20 | New Orleans Saints | L 3–13 | 2–4 | Atlanta Stadium | 47,217 | Recap |
7 | October 28 | at Pittsburgh Steelers | L 17–24 | 2–5 | Three Rivers Stadium | 48,094 | Recap |
8 | November 3 | at Miami Dolphins | L 7–42 | 2–6 | Miami Orange Bowl | 64,399 | Recap |
9 | November 10 | at Los Angeles Rams | L 0–21 | 2–7 | Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum | 70,056 | Recap |
10 | November 17 | Baltimore Colts | L 7–17 | 2–8 | Atlanta Stadium | 41,278 | Recap |
11 | November 24 | at San Francisco 49ers | L 0–27 | 2–9 | Candlestick Park | 45,435 | Recap |
12 | December 1 | Los Angeles Rams | L 7–30 | 2–10 | Atlanta Stadium | 18,648 | Recap |
13 | December 7 | at Minnesota Vikings | L 10–23 | 2–11 | Metropolitan Stadium | 47,105 | Recap |
14 | December 15 | Green Bay Packers | W 10–3 | 3–11 | Atlanta Stadium | 10,020 | Recap |
Note: Intra-division opponents are in bold text.
Season summary[]
Week 4[]
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Standings[]
NFC West | |||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
W | L | T | PCT | DIV | CONF | PF | PA | STK | |
Los Angeles Rams | 10 | 4 | 0 | .714 | 5–1 | 7–3 | 263 | 181 | W1 |
San Francisco 49ers | 6 | 8 | 0 | .429 | 4–2 | 6–5 | 226 | 236 | W2 |
New Orleans Saints | 5 | 9 | 0 | .357 | 3–3 | 5–6 | 166 | 263 | L1 |
Atlanta Falcons | 3 | 11 | 0 | .214 | 0–6 | 3–8 | 111 | 271 | W1 |
References[]
- ^ “Falcons deny trading Reaves Connected with Players’ Strike”; in Ellensburg Daily Record; July 20, 1974; p. 4
- ^ “Falcons blast Eagles, 23–7”; in St. Petersburg Times; August 5, 1974; p. 9C
- ^ “Harold Hart, Stabler Leader Raiders’ Win Over Falcons”; in The Tuscaloosa News; August 11, 1974; p. 2C
- ^ “Falcon Tackle out for Season”; in Bangor Daily News; August 22, 1974; p. 18
- ^ “Hampton out with Bum Knee”; in Rome News-Tribune; August 27, 1974; p. 6
- ^ Pro-Football-Reference.com: In a single season, from 1961 to 1978, in the regular season, sorted by ascending Points For and Requiring Points For less than 200
- ^ “Falcons Dump the Dutchman”; in The Pittsburgh Press, November 5, 1974; p. 69
- ^ “Steelers Take on Falcons”; in St. Petersburg Times; October 28, 1974; p. 3C
- ^ "1974 Atlanta Falcons draftees". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved October 24, 2014.
- ^ Pro-Football-Reference.com
External links[]
Atlanta Falcons
- 1974 National Football League season by team
- Atlanta Falcons seasons
- 1974 in sports in Georgia (U.S. state)