| 1978 Atlanta Falcons season | |
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| Owner | Rankin M. Smith Sr. |
| General manager | Eddie LeBaron |
| Head coach | Leeman Bennett |
| Home field | Fulton County Stadium |
| Results | |
| Record | 9–7 |
| Division place | 2nd NFC West |
| Playoff finish | Won Wild Card Playoffs (vs. Eagles) 14–13 Lost Divisional Playoffs (atCowboys) 20–27 |
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The 1978 Atlanta Falcons season was the Falcons' 13th season. After losing four of their first six games, Atlanta rebounded to win seven of their last ten, and their 9-7 record was the third best in a weak NFC. The NFC West runners-up thus not only secured their first-ever postseason berth in franchise history, but earned a home playoff game under the expanded ten team format.
Hosting the Philadelphia Eagles in their first ever playoff game, the Falcons scored two touchdowns in their final fourteen minutes to pull out a 14–13 win. In the divisional round, the Falcons were 14-point underdogs facing the Dallas Cowboys. Atlanta took a seven point lead into halftime, but the Cowboys came back to take a 27–20 lead. In their final drive, the Falcons fell inches short of a first down on the Cowboys' 32-yard line, as Dallas got the ball and ran down the clock.
| 1978 Atlanta Falcons draft | |||||
| Round | Pick | Player | Position | College | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 13 | Mike Kenn * | Offensive tackle | Michigan | |
| 2 | 43 | Steve Stewart | Linebacker | Minnesota | |
| 3 | 70 | Stan Waldemore | Guard | Nebraska | |
| 4 | 95 | Brian Cabral | Linebacker | Colorado | |
| 5 | 125 | Dennis Pearson | Wide receiver | San Diego State | |
| 6 | 152 | Rodney Parker | Wide receiver | Tennessee State | |
| 7 | 167 | Alfred Jackson | Wide receiver | Texas | |
| 7 | 179 | James Wright | Tight end | Texas Christian | |
| 8 | 209 | David Adkins | Linebacker | Ohio State | |
| 8 | 216 | David Williams | Offensive tackle | Tennessee–Martin | |
| 9 | 236 | Tom Pridemore | Safety | West Virginia | |
| 10 | 257 | Ricky Patton | Running back | Jackson State | |
| 10 | 263 | Ray Strong | Running back | UNLV | |
| 11 | 293 | Scooter Reed | Defensive back | Baylor | |
| 12 | 320 | Daria Butler | Linebacker | Oklahoma State | |
| Made roster * Made at least one Pro Bowl during career | |||||
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Front office
Head coaches
Offensive coaches
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Defensive coaches
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| Week | Date | Opponent | Result | Record | Venue | Attendance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | September 3 | Houston Oilers | W 20–14 | 1–0 | Atlanta–Fulton County Stadium | 57,328 |
| 2 | September 10 | atLos Angeles Rams | L 0–10 | 1–1 | Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum | 46,201 |
| 3 | September 17 | Cleveland Browns | L 16–24 | 1–2 | Atlanta–Fulton County Stadium | 56,648 |
| 4 | September 24 | atTampa Bay Buccaneers | L 9–14 | 1–3 | Tampa Stadium | 58,073 |
| 5 | October 1 | New York Giants | W 23–20 | 2–3 | Atlanta–Fulton County Stadium | 47,765 |
| 6 | October 8 | atPittsburgh Steelers | L 7–31 | 2–4 | Three Rivers Stadium | 48,202 |
| 7 | October 15 | Detroit Lions | W 14–0 | 3–4 | Atlanta–Fulton County Stadium | 51,172 |
| 8 | October 22 | atSan Francisco 49ers | W 20–17 | 4–4 | Candlestick Park | 44,235 |
| 9 | October 30 | Los Angeles Rams | W 15–7 | 5–4 | Atlanta–Fulton County Stadium | 57,250 |
| 10 | November 5 | San Francisco 49ers | W 21–10 | 6–4 | Atlanta–Fulton County Stadium | 55,468 |
| 11 | November 12 | atNew Orleans Saints | W 20–17 | 7–4 | Louisiana Superdome | 70,323 |
| 12 | November 19 | atChicago Bears | L 7–13 | 7–5 | Soldier Field | 46,022 |
| 13 | November 26 | New Orleans Saints | W 20–17 | 8–5 | Atlanta–Fulton County Stadium | 55,121 |
| 14 | December 3 | atCincinnati Bengals | L 7–37 | 8–6 | Riverfront Stadium | 25,336 |
| 15 | December 10 | Washington Redskins | W 20–17 | 9–6 | Atlanta–Fulton County Stadium | 54,176 |
| 16 | December 17 | atSt. Louis Cardinals | L 21–42 | 9–7 | Busch Memorial Stadium | 40,022 |
| Note: Intra-division opponents are in bold text. | ||||||
| NFC West | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
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W | L | T | PCT | DIV | CONF | PF | PA | STK |
| Los Angeles Rams(1) | 12 | 4 | 0 | .750 | 4–2 | 10–2 | 316 | 245 | W1 |
| Atlanta Falcons(4) | 9 | 7 | 0 | .563 | 5–1 | 8–4 | 240 | 290 | L1 |
| New Orleans Saints | 7 | 9 | 0 | .438 | 3–3 | 6–6 | 281 | 298 | W1 |
| San Francisco 49ers | 2 | 14 | 0 | .125 | 0–6 | 1–11 | 219 | 350 | L1 |
Week 1: Houston Oilers at Atlanta Falcons
| Period | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Oilers | 7 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 14 |
| Falcons | 0 | 14 | 3 | 3 | 20 |
atFulton County Stadium • Atlanta, Georgia
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Week 2: Atlanta Falcons at Los Angeles Rams
| Period | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
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| Falcons | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Rams | 0 | 3 | 0 | 7 | 10 |
atLos Angeles Memorial Coliseum • Los Angeles, California
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Week 3: Cleveland Browns at Atlanta Falcons – Game summary
| Period | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
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| Browns | 0 | 17 | 0 | 7 | 24 |
| Falcons | 3 | 7 | 0 | 6 | 16 |
atAtlanta–Fulton County Stadium, Atlanta
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Steve Bartkowski threw a 24-yard touchdown pass to Billy Ryckman early in the second quarter and Bubba Bean erupted for a 25-yard touchdown run in the final minutes of the game as the Falcons got a critical win to stay alive in the NFC Playoff hunt. The Falcons defense also played a part in their win with two brilliant goal line stands. It was the first home shutout in Falcons History. The Lions' woeful offense could produce only 22 rushing yards.
Atlanta erased a 17-7 deficit in the final 5:38 of the game, beating San Francisco on Tim Mazzetti's last-second, 29-yard field goal. Steve Bartkowski directed the comeback, hitting a 71-yard bomb to set up a 21-yard Mazzetti field goal, completing a 59-yard scoring pass to Billy Ryckman with 1:52 remaining and then finding Tim Mitchell with a 19-yard reception to set up a winning kick. This game was broadcast by CBS with announcers Vin Scully, George Allen and Jim Brown at the game.
Week 9: Los Angeles Rams at Atlanta Falcons
| Period | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
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| Rams | 0 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 7 |
| Falcons | 0 | 6 | 0 | 9 | 15 |
atFulton County Stadium • Atlanta, Georgia
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Steve Bartkowski, who suffered a separate shoulder last Monday, ran for one touchdown and threw a 37-yard scoring pass to Wallace Francis as Atlanta spoiled the head coaching debutof the 49ers' Fred O'Connor who replaced the fired Pete McCulley on Tuesday. San Francisco's O.J. Simpson suffered a shoulder separation early in the second period. Simpson had carried 5 times for only 15 yards before the injury. Atlanta's win help keep their playoff hopes alive for a wild card berth at 6-4 the same record as the Cowboys and the Vikings.
| Period | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
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| Eagles | 6 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 13 |
| Falcons | 0 | 0 | 0 | 14 | 14 |
atAtlanta–Fulton County Stadium, Atlanta, Georgia
The Falcons won their first playoff game in team history after they overcame a 13–0 deficit by scoring 2 touchdowns in the final 5 minutes of the game.
| Period | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
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| Falcons | 7 | 13 | 0 | 0 | 20 |
| Cowboys | 10 | 3 | 7 | 7 | 27 |
atTexas Stadium, Irving, Texas
Dallas' "Doomsday Defense" limited Atlanta quarterback Steve Bartkowski to only 8 completions in 23 attempts and intercepted him 3 times en route to victory. After the Falcons led 20–13 at halftime, the Cowboys scored 14 unanswered points in the second half.
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| Wild card / First round berths (8) |
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| Division championships (6) |
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Italics indicates Super Bowl appearance |
