The Atlanta Falcons are an American football team based in Atlanta, Georgia. They are currently a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) South division in the National Football League (NFL). The Falcons joined the NFL in 1966 as an expansion team. In their 42 years of existence, the Falcons have compiled a record of 262-386-6 with division championships in 1980, 1998 and 2004, and appeared in Super Bowl XXXIII in Miami, Florida.

The Atlanta Falcons franchise began on June 30, 1965 when NFL Commissioner Pete Rozelle granted ownership to Rankin Smith Sr. The Falcons drafted LB Tommy Nobis from the University of Texas with the first pick of the 1966 NFL Draft, making him the first ever Falcon.

The Falcons had their first season in 1966, and their first game (preseason) on August 1, 1966 losing to the Philadelphia Eagles. After losing their first nine games that season, their first victory was on the road against the New York Giants. The team finished the 1960s with only 12 wins. The Falcons had their first Monday Night Football game in Atlanta during the 1970 season. The 1971 season was their first with a winning record.

In the 1978 season, the Falcons entered their first playoff series and won the Wild Card Playoffs against the Eagles only to lose to the Dallas Cowboys in the Divisional Playoffs. In 1980, they finished 12-4 only to lose again to the Cowboys in the Divisional Playoffs. In the strike-shortened 1982 season, the Falcons made the playoffs but lost to the Minnesota Vikings, 30-24. Falcons coach Leeman Bennett was fired after the loss. After the 1982 season, the Atlanta Falcons did not see another playoff series until 1991, when they lost to the Washington Redskins in the Divisional Playoffs.

Led by QB Chris Chandler and RB Jamal Anderson, the "Dirty Bird" Falcons had their greatest season to date in 1998. On November 8, they won 41-10 over the New England Patriots, snapping a streak of 22 consecutive losses at cold-weather sites in November and December that had dated back to 1982. The team finished with a 14-2 regular season record and the NFC West division championship. On January 18, 1999, the Falcons upset the top-seeded 15-1 Vikings at Minnesota in the NFC Championship Game, 30-27 in overtime. They lost, 34-19, to the Denver Broncos in Super Bowl XXXIII.

In the 2001 NFL Draft, the Falcons orchestrated a trade with the San Diego Chargers, acquiring the first overall pick (which was used on quarterback Michael Vick) in exchange for wide receiver Tim Dwight and the fifth overall pick (used on running back LaDainian Tomlinson). Michael Vick became backup to starting QB Chris Chandler, and was the full-time starting quarterback by 2002. He lead them to the playoffs in 2002 only to lose to the Philadelphia Eagles once again in the Divisional Playoffs. During the 2003 preseason Michael Vick broke his leg and missed the first twelve games of the season. The Falcons ended up with a dismal 5-11 record that year.

Vick returned for the full season in 2004, when the Falcons went 11-5. They made it to the Conference Championship, once again losing to the Eagles. The Falcons failed yet again to maintain back-to-back winning seasons in 2005, going 8-8. The 2006 Falcons had a chance to make the playoffs until the New York Giants beat the Washington Redskins, helping to seal their record at a losing 7-9. In 2007, Vick was suspended indefinitely by the NFL after pleading guilty to charges involved with dog fighting in the state of Virginia. On December 10, Vick received a 23 month sentence. In the beginning of the 2007 season, the Falcons were forced to put Joey Harrington as starting quarterback. On December 11, 13 games into his first NFL season as coach, Bobby Petrino resigned, and then accepted an offer to take over as the head coach at the University of Arkansas. Secondary Coach Emmitt Thomas was named interim coach for the final three games of 2007 on December 12.

On January 23, Jacksonville Jaguars defensive coach Mike Smith was named the Falcons' new head coach. On April 26, Matt Ryan (Quarterback from Boston College) was drafted 3rd overall and in the 2008 NFL Draft.

When the team debuted in 1966, the Falcons wore red helmets with a black falcon crest logo. They wore white pants and either black or white jerseys. At first, the falcon crest logo was also put on the jersey sleeves, but it was replaced by a red and white stripe pattern four year later. They switched from black to red jerseys in 1971, and the club began to wear silver pants in 1978.

In 1990, the uniform design changed to black helmets, silver pants, and either black or white jerseys. The numbers on the white jerseys were black, but were changed to red in 1997. (The red numerals could be seen on the away jerseys briefly in 1990.)

Both the logo and uniforms changed in 2003. The logo was redesigned with red and silver accents to depict a more powerful, aggressive falcon, which now more closely resembles the capital letter F. Although the Falcons still wore black helmets, the new uniforms featured jerseys and pants with red trim down the sides. The uniform design consisted of either black or white jerseys, and either black or white pants. During that same year, a red alternate jersey with black trim was also introduced. The Falcons also started wearing black cleats with these uniforms.

In 2004, the red jerseys became the primary jerseys, and the black ones became the alternate, primarily wearing white pants with the white jerseys and white pants with the red jerseys. The Falcons also in select road games wear black pants with white jerseys. In the past three seasons, the Falcons wore an all-black combination for home games against their archrivals, the New Orleans Saints, winning the first two contests (24-21 in 2004 and 36-17 in 2005), but losing 31-13 in 2006. They wore the combination again in 2006, against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in Week 2. The Falcons won that game as well, 14-3.

In the 1980s the Falcons primarily wore their white uniforms at home mainly to gain an advantage due to the heat and humidity of Atlanta's climate. When the team moved indoors, the Falcons switched to wearing their dark uniforms at home. The Falcons have worn white at home a few times since moving indoors. In 2002, the Falcons wore white at home for a game against the Bengals. In 2003, the Falcons wore white for a game against the Panthers.