NFL team season
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 .
[ 9]
1974 Atlanta Falcons staff Front office
Head coaches
Head coach – Norm Van Brocklin (games 1-8) Marion Campbell (games 9-14) Offensive coaches
Defensive coaches
1974 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
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 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 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.
Week 1: vs. Dallas Cowboys [ edit ] Week 1: Atlanta Falcons at Dallas Cowboys – Game summary
Quarter 1 2 3 4 Total Cowboys 7 10 0 7 24 Falcons 0 0 0 0 0
at Atlanta Stadium , Atlanta, Georgia
Date : September 15Game time : 4:00 p.m. EDT Game weather : Partly cloudy, 71 °F (22 °C)Game attendance : 52,322Box score
Game information First quarter
Second quarter
DAL – Mac Percival 33-yard field goal. Cowboys 10–0. DAL – Golden Richards 52-yard pass from Roger Staubach (Mac Percival kick). Cowboys 17–0. Third quarter
Fourth quarter
Top passers
Top rushers
Top receivers
Week 2: vs. San Francisco 49ers [ edit ] Week 2: San Francisco 49ers at Atlanta Falcons – Game summary
Quarter 1 2 3 4 Total 49ers 13 0 0 3 16 Falcons 7 0 0 3 10
at Atlanta Stadium, Atlanta, Georgia
Date : September 22Game time : 1:00 p.m. EDTGame weather : Cloudy, 68 °F (20 °C)Game attendance : 47,686Box score
Game information First quarter
Second quarter
Third quarter
Fourth quarter
ATL – Nick Mike-Mayer 32-yard field goal. 49ers 13–10. SF – Bruce Gossett 25-yard field goal. 49ers 16–10. Top passers
SF – Joe Reed – 7/22, 101 yards, TD, INT ATL – Bob Lee – 10/23, 99 yards, 3 INT Top rushers
Top receivers
Week 3: at New Orleans Saints [ edit ] Week 3: Atlanta Falcons at New Orleans Saints – Game summary
Quarter 1 2 3 4 Total Falcons 0 7 3 3 13 Saints 0 7 0 7 14
at Tulane Stadium , New Orleans, Louisiana
Date : September 29Game time : 1:00 p.m. EDT/12:00 p.m. CDT Game weather : Cloudy, 79 °F (26 °C)Game attendance : 62,273Box score
Game information First quarter
Second quarter
Third quarter
ATL – Nick Mike-Mayer 21-yard field goal. Falcons 10–7. Fourth quarter
ATL – Nick Mike-Mayer 27-yard field goal. Falcons 13–7. NO – Jess Phillips 8-yard run (Bill McClard kick). Saints 14–13. Top passers
Top rushers
Top receivers
Week 4: at New York Giants [ edit ] Week 4: Atlanta Falcons at New York Giants – Game summary
Quarter 1 2 3 4 Total Falcons 0 7 7 0 14 Giants 7 0 0 0 7
at Yale Bowl , New Haven, Connecticut
Date : October 6Game time : 1:00 p.m. EDTGame weather : Partly cloudy, 63 °F (17 °C)Game attendance : 42,379Box score
Game information First quarter
Second quarter
Third quarter
ATL – Ray Brown 59-yard interception return (Nick Mike-Mayer kick). Falcons 14–7. Fourth quarter
Top passers
ATL – Bob Lee – 10/17, 142 yards, TD, 3 INT NYG – Norm Snead – 10/20, 85 yards, 2 INT Top rushers
Top receivers
Week 5: vs. Chicago Bears [ edit ] Week 5: Chicago Bears at Atlanta Falcons – Game summary
Quarter 1 2 3 4 Total Bears 0 0 0 10 10 Falcons 0 7 3 3 13
at Atlanta Stadium, Atlanta, Georgia
Date : October 13Game time : 1:00 p.m. EDTGame weather : Partly cloudy, 68 °F (20 °C)Game attendance : 47,835Box score
Game information First quarter
Second quarter
Third quarter
ATL – Nick Mike-Mayer 35-yard field goal. Falcons 10–0. Fourth quarter
CHI – Bo Rather 59-yard pass from Gary Huff (Mirro Roder kick). Falcons 10–7. CHI – Mirro Roder 37-yard field goal. Tied 10–10. ATL – Nick Mike-Mayer 31-yard field goal. Falcons 13–10. Top passers
CHI – Gary Huff – 14/25, 177 yards, TD, 2 INT ATL – Bob Lee – 10/18, 121 yards, 2 INT Top rushers
Top receivers
Week 6: vs. New Orleans Saints [ edit ] Week 6: New Orleans Saints at Atlanta Falcons – Game summary
Quarter 1 2 3 4 Total Saints 0 10 3 0 13 Falcons 0 3 0 0 3
at Atlanta Stadium, Atlanta, Georgia
Date : October 20Game time : 1:00 p.m. EDTGame weather : Sunny, 52 °F (11 °C)Game attendance : 47,217Box score
Game information First quarter
Second quarter
Third quarter
NO – Bill McClard 31-yard field goal. Saints 13–3. Fourth quarter
Top passers
Top rushers
Top receivers
Week 7: at Pittsburgh Steelers [ edit ] Game information First quarter
Second quarter
Third quarter
PIT – Roy Gerela 33-yard field goal. Steelers 17–14. Fourth quarter
PIT – Franco Harris 7-yard run (Roy Gerela kick). Steelers 24–14. ATL – Nick Mike-Mayer 32-yard field goal. Steelers 24–17. Top passers
Top rushers
Top receivers
ATL – Jim Mitchell – 2 receptions, 62 yards PIT – Franco Harris – 2 receptions, 37 yards
Week 8: at Miami Dolphins [ edit ] Week 8: Atlanta Falcons at Miami Dolphins – Game summary
Quarter 1 2 3 4 Total Falcons 0 7 0 0 7 Dolphins 0 14 21 7 42
at Miami Orange Bowl , Miami, Florida
Date : November 3Game time : 4:00 p.m. ESTGame weather : Partly cloudy, 77 °F (25 °C)Game attendance : 64,399Box score
Game information First quarter
Second quarter
Third quarter
MIA – Don Nottingham 1-yard run (Garo Yepremian kick). Dolphins 21–7. MIA – Jim Mandich 18-yard pass from Bob Griese (Garo Yepremian kick). Dolphins 28–7. MIA – Don Nottingham 2-yard run (Garo Yepremian kick). Dolphins 35–7. Fourth quarter
MIA – Don Nottingham 1-yard (Garo Yepremian kick). Dolphins 42–7. Top passers
Top rushers
Top receivers
Week 9: at Los Angeles Rams [ edit ] Game information First quarter
Second quarter
Third quarter
LAR – Tony Baker 1-yard run (David Ray kick). Rams 14–0. Fourth quarter
LAR – Harold Jackson 25-yard pass from James Harris (David Ray kick). Rams 21–0. Top passers
Top rushers
Top receivers
ATL – Art Malone – 6 receptions, 33 yards LAR – Harold Jackson – 3 receptions, 79 yards, 2 TD
Week 10: vs. Baltimore Colts [ edit ] Week 10: Baltimore Colts at Atlanta Falcons – Game summary
Quarter 1 2 3 4 Total Colts 0 10 0 7 17 Falcons 0 7 0 0 7
at Atlanta Stadium, Atlanta, Georgia
Date : November 17Game time : 1:00 p.m. ESTGame weather : Partly cloudy, 54 °F (12 °C)Game attendance : 41,278Box score
Game information First quarter
Second quarter
Third quarter
Fourth quarter
BAL – Bill Olds 1-yard run (Toni Linhart kick). Colts 17–7. Top passers
Top rushers
Top receivers
Week 11: at San Francisco 49ers [ edit ] Week 11: Atlanta Falcons at San Francisco 49ers – Game summary
Quarter 1 2 3 4 Total Falcons 0 0 0 0 0 49ers 7 7 0 13 27
at Candlestick Park , San Francisco, California
Date : November 24Game time : 4:00 p.m. EST/1:00 p.m. PSTGame weather : Cloudy, 50 °F (10 °C)Game attendance : 45,435Box score
Game information First quarter
Second quarter
SF – Gene Washington 53-yard pass from Tom Owen (Bruce Gossett kick). 49ers 14–0. Third quarter
Fourth quarter
SF – Manfred Moore 88-yard punt return (Bruce Gossett kick). 49ers 21–0. SF – Bruce Gossett 20-yard field goal. 49ers 24–0. SF – Bruce Gossett 42-yard field goal. 49ers 27–0. Top passers
Top rushers
Top receivers
ATL – Dave Hampton – 4 receptions, 37 yards SF – Gene Washington – 2 receptions, 58 yards, 2 TD
Week 12: vs. Los Angeles Rams [ edit ] Week 12: Los Angeles Rams at Atlanta Falcons – Game summary
Quarter 1 2 3 4 Total Rams 6 7 17 0 30 Falcons 0 7 0 0 7
at Atlanta Stadium, Atlanta, Georgia
Date : December 1Game time : 4:00 p.m. ESTGame weather : Rain, 36 °F (2 °C)Game attendance : 18,648Box score
Game information First quarter
Second quarter
Third quarter
LAR – Dave Elmendorf 57-yard interception return (David Ray kick). Rams 20–7. LAR – Jim Bertelsen 4-yard run (David Ray kick). Rams 27–7. LAR – David Ray 23-yard field goal. Rams 30–7. Fourth quarter
Top passers
Top rushers
Top receivers
Week 13: at Minnesota Vikings [ edit ] Week 13: Atlanta Falcons at Minnesota Vikings – Game summary
Quarter 1 2 3 4 Total Falcons 0 7 0 3 10 Vikings 7 3 6 7 23
at Metropolitan Stadium , Bloomington, Minnesota
Date : Game time : 1:00 p.m. EST/12:00 p.m. CSTGame weather : Cloudy with flurries, 28 °F (−2 °C)Game attendance : 47,105Box score
Game information First quarter
Second quarter
Third quarter
MIN – Dave Osborn 5-yard run (kick failed). Vikings 16–7. Fourth quarter
ATL – Nick Mike-Mayer 36-yard field goal. Vikings 16–10. MIN – Stu Voigt 10-yard pass from Bob Berry (Fred Cox kick). Vikings 23–10. Top passers
Top rushers
Top receivers
ATL – Ken Burrow – 3 receptions, 50 yards MIN – Dave Osborn – 6 receptions, 39 yards
Week 14: vs. Green Bay Packers [ edit ] Week 14: Green Bay Packers at Atlanta Falcons – Game summary
Quarter 1 2 3 4 Total Packers 0 0 3 0 3 Falcons 7 3 0 0 10
at Atlanta Stadium, Atlanta, Georgia
Date : December 15Game time : 1:00 p.m. ESTGame weather : Cloudy, 42 °F (6 °C)Game attendance : 10,020Box score
Game information First quarter
Second quarter
ATL – Nick Mike-Mayer 47-yard field goal. Falcons 10–0. Third quarter
Fourth quarter
Top passers
Top rushers
Top receivers
^ “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 .
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