Surf Wiki
Save to docs
sports

From Surf Wiki (app.surf) — the open knowledge base

1980 Atlanta Falcons season

NFL team season

NFL team season

FieldValue
teamAtlanta Falcons
year1980
record12–4
division_place1st NFC West
coachLeeman Bennett
general managerEddie LeBaron
ownerRankin M. Smith Sr.
stadiumFulton County Stadium
playoffsLost [Divisional Playoffs](1980-81-nfl-playoffs)
(vs. [Cowboys](1980-dallas-cowboys-season)) 27–30
pro_bowlersRB William Andrews
QB Steve Bartkowski
WR Alfred Jenkins
C Jeff van Note
T Mike Kenn
TE Junior Miller
shortnavlinkFalcons seasons

(vs. Cowboys) 27–30 QB Steve Bartkowski WR Alfred Jenkins C Jeff van Note T Mike Kenn TE Junior Miller

The 1980 Atlanta Falcons season was the Falcons' 15th season and culminated in their first division title in franchise history. After a 3–3 start, the Falcons went on a nine-game winning streak as quarterback Steve Bartkowski passed for a career-best 3,544 yards while connecting on 31 touchdown passes. As the NFC's top seed, the Falcons gained home-field advantage throughout the playoffs. The Falcons' season ended with a 30–27 divisional playoff loss to the Dallas Cowboys before 60,022 fans at Fulton County Stadium.

This would be the last time the Falcons capture a winning record in a non strike season until 1991, as well as their last division title until 1998.

Offseason

Draft

Main article: 1980 NFL draft

Personnel

Staff

  • Chairman of the board – Rankin M. Smith Sr.

  • President – Rankin M. Smith, Jr.

  • General manager – Eddie LeBaron

  • Director of player personnel – Tom Braatz

  • Head coach – Leeman Bennett

  • Quarterbacks – Dick Wood

  • Offensive backs – John North

  • Receivers – Jimmy Raye

  • Offensive line – Bill Walsh

  • Defensive coordinator – Jerry Glanville

  • Defensive line – Jim Stanley

  • Linebackers – Doug Shively

Roster

Regular season

Schedule

Atlanta Falconsyear=1980border=2}}"WeekAtlanta Falconsyear=1980border=2}}"DateAtlanta Falconsyear=1980border=2}}"OpponentAtlanta Falconsyear=1980border=2}}"ResultAtlanta Falconsyear=1980border=2}}"RecordAtlanta Falconsyear=1980border=2}}"VenueAtlanta Falconsyear=1980border=2}}"AttendanceAtlanta Falconsyear=1980border=2}}"Recap12345678910111213141516
September 7at [Minnesota Vikings](1980-minnesota-vikings-season)**L** 23–240–1Metropolitan Stadium44,773[Recap](https://www.pro-football-reference.com/boxscores/198009070min.htm)
September 14at [New England Patriots](1980-new-england-patriots-season)**W** 37–211–1Schaefer Stadium48,321[Recap](https://www.pro-football-reference.com/boxscores/198009140nwe.htm)
September 21[Miami Dolphins](1980-miami-dolphins-season)**L** 17–201–2Atlanta–Fulton County Stadium55,470[Recap](https://www.pro-football-reference.com/boxscores/198009210atl.htm)
September 28at **[San Francisco 49ers](1980-san-francisco-49ers-season)****W** 20–172–2Candlestick Park56,518[Recap](https://www.pro-football-reference.com/boxscores/198009280sfo.htm)
October 5[Detroit Lions](1980-detroit-lions-season)**W** 43–283–2Atlanta–Fulton County Stadium57,652[Recap](https://www.pro-football-reference.com/boxscores/198010050atl.htm)
October 12[New York Jets](1980-new-york-jets-season)**L** 7–143–3Atlanta–Fulton County Stadium57,458[Recap](https://www.pro-football-reference.com/boxscores/198010120atl.htm)
October 19at **[New Orleans Saints](1980-new-orleans-saints-season)****W** 41–144–3Louisiana Superdome62,651[Recap](https://www.pro-football-reference.com/boxscores/198010190nor.htm)
October 26**[Los Angeles Rams](1980-los-angeles-rams-season)****W** 13–105–3Atlanta–Fulton County Stadium57,401[Recap](https://www.pro-football-reference.com/boxscores/198010260atl.htm)
November 2at [Buffalo Bills](1980-buffalo-bills-season)**W** 30–146–3Rich Stadium57,959[Recap](https://www.pro-football-reference.com/boxscores/198011020buf.htm)
November 9at [St. Louis Cardinals](1980-st-louis-cardinals-nfl-season)**W** 33–27 (OT)7–3Busch Memorial Stadium48,662[Recap](https://www.pro-football-reference.com/boxscores/198011090crd.htm)
November 16**[New Orleans Saints](1980-new-orleans-saints-season)****W** 31–138–3Atlanta–Fulton County Stadium53,871[Recap](https://www.pro-football-reference.com/boxscores/198011160atl.htm)
November 23[Chicago Bears](1980-chicago-bears-season)**W** 28–179–3Atlanta–Fulton County Stadium49,156[Recap](https://www.pro-football-reference.com/boxscores/198011230atl.htm)
November 30[Washington Redskins](1980-washington-redskins-season)**W** 10–610–3Atlanta–Fulton County Stadium55,665[Recap](https://www.pro-football-reference.com/boxscores/198011300atl.htm)
December 7at [Philadelphia Eagles](1980-philadelphia-eagles-season)**W** 20–1711–3Veterans Stadium70,205[Recap](https://www.pro-football-reference.com/boxscores/198012070phi.htm)
December 14**[San Francisco 49ers](1980-san-francisco-49ers-season)****W** 35–1012–3Atlanta–Fulton County Stadium55,767[Recap](https://www.pro-football-reference.com/boxscores/198012140atl.htm)
December 21at **[Los Angeles Rams](1980-los-angeles-rams-season)****L** 17–20 (OT)12–4Anaheim Stadium62,469[Recap](https://www.pro-football-reference.com/boxscores/198012210ram.htm)
**Note:** Intra-division opponents are in **bold** text.

Game summaries

Week 1

Week 2

Week 3

Week 4

Week 5

Week 6

Week 7

Week 8

Week 9

Week 10

Week 11

Week 12

Week 13

Week 14

Week 15

Week 16

Playoffs

Atlanta Falconsyear=1980border=2}}"RoundAtlanta Falconsyear=1980border=2}}"DateAtlanta Falconsyear=1980border=2}}"Opponent (seed)Atlanta Falconsyear=1980border=2}}"ResultAtlanta Falconsyear=1980border=2}}"VenueAtlanta Falconsyear=1980border=2}}"AttendanceAtlanta Falconsyear=1980border=2}}"RecapDivisional
January 4[Dallas Cowboys](1980-dallas-cowboys-season) (4)**L** 27–30Atlanta–Fulton County Stadium60,022[Recap](https://www.pro-football-reference.com/boxscores/198101040atl.htm)

Divisional

Standings

References

References

  1. "1980 Atlanta Falcons Draftees". Pro Football Reference.
  2. [https://www.pro-football-reference.com/boxscores/198010190nor.htm Pro-Football-Reference.com]
Info: Wikipedia Source

This article was imported from Wikipedia and is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Content has been adapted to SurfDoc format. Original contributors can be found on the article history page.

1980-nfl-season-by-team atlanta-falcons-seasons nfc-west-championship-seasons 1980-in-sports-in-georgia-(u.s.-state) 1980-in-atlanta
Want to explore this topic further?

Ask Mako anything about 1980 Atlanta Falcons season — get instant answers, deeper analysis, and related topics.

Research with Mako

Free with your Surf account

Content sourced from Wikipedia, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.

This content may have been generated or modified by AI. CloudSurf Software LLC is not responsible for the accuracy, completeness, or reliability of AI-generated content. Always verify important information from primary sources.

Report