Out with Norb (1968)
| Record | Passing yards leader | Rushing yards leader | Receiving yards leader |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2-12 | Bob Berry (1433 yards) | James “Cannonball” Butler (365 yards) | Bob Long (484 yards) |
After a 0-3 start in the ’68 season, things had to change. HC Norb Hecker was sacked and replaced by Norm Van Brocklin, former HC for the Minnesota Vikings, took his place. Nicknamed “The Dutchman” and a future Hall of Famer, under his lead the team showed some improved, although it was hard to perform worse. The team finished the season 2-12, recording wins over the Giants and Bears, but was already more competitive in most matches than they had been in previous seasons, not recording the worst defensive record in the league for the first time in history (but 15th out of 16). Tommy Nobis was voted to the pro bowl for the third time in a row and first round draft pick DE Claude Humphrey was named Defensive Rookie of the year.
Notable draft picks
DE Claude Humphrey, Hall of Famer inducted in 2014, 6 time Pro Bowler
LB Greg Brezina, 1 time Pro Bowler
Light at the end (1969)
| Record | Passing yards leader | Rushing yards leader | Receiving yards leader |
|---|---|---|---|
| 6-8 | Bob Berry (1087 yards) | James “Cannonball” Butler (655 yards) | Paul Flatley (834 yards) |
Things were looking up for the ’69 season. Van Brocklin finally has the chance to shift the team to his liking, and it showed. After a season opening win against the 49ers, the Falcons drove to a record 6-8 season, equaling their amount of wins in the 3 previous seasons. This included a record 45-17 win over the Saints, tying the rivalry, which was the largest win the Falcons had registered at the time. Seven players were voted to the pro bowl, including QB Bob Perry, who officially took over the starting QB role halfway through the season.
Notable draft picks
T George Kunz, 8 time Pro Bowler
C Jeff Van Note, 5 time Pro Bowler, stayed in Atlanta for 18 years, 16 as a starter, has his #57 retired
TE Jim Mitchel, 2 time Pro Bowler
To be continued
While the Falcons didn’t have the smooth start one could wish, things were looking up under Norm “The Dutchman” Van Brocklin. Especially the defense, which ranked 6th in the 1969 season, improved heavily and seemed to offer the building blocks to evolve the team into a steady competitor in future years. Quarterback Bob Berry also seemed to be a huge, although injury-prone improvement over Randy Johnson and could be the next big thing.
Statistics
| Leaders (Decade, 1966-1969) | Receptions/Attempts | Yards | Touchdowns | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Passing | Randy Johnson | 395/832 | Randy Johnson | 5095 | Randy Johnson | 35 |
| Rushing | Junior Coffey | 428 | Junior Coffey | 1612 | Junior Coffey | 9 |
| Receiving | Paul Flatley | 65 | Paul Flatley | 1138 | Paul Flatley | 6 |
| Interceptions | Ken Reaves | 12 | ||||
| Leaders (Single Season) | Attemps/Receptions | Yards | Touchdowns | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Passing | Randy Johnson (1966) [Att], (1967) [Comp] | 142 [Comp], 295 [Att] | Randy Johnson (1966) | 1795 | Randy Johnson (1966) | 12 |
| Rushing | Junior Coffey (1966) | 199 | Junior Coffey (1966/1967) | 722 (tie) | Junior Coffey (1966/1967), Randy Johnson (1966) | 4 (tie) |
| Receiving | Paul Flatley (1969) | 45 | Paul Flatley (1969) | 834 | Paul Flatley (1969) | 6 |
| Interceptions | Ken Reaves (1967) | 7 | ||||
| Leaders (Single Game) | Attemps/Receptions | Yards | Touchdowns | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Passing | Randy Johnson (1967, week 1 vs Colts) [Comp], (1966, week 2 vs Eagles) [Att] | 18 [Comp] / 31 [Att] | Bob Berry (Week 8 vs Steelers) | 282 | Randy Johnson (1969, week 9 vs Bears) | 4 |
| Rushing | James “Canonball” Butler (1968, week 5 vs Giants) | 22 | Junior Coffey (1966, week 8 vs Browns) | 117 | Junior Coffey (1966), Perry Lee Dunn (1968), Bob Perry (1968) | 2 (tie) |
| Receiving | Alex Hawkins (1966, week 2 vs Eagles) | 9 | Alex Hawkins (1966, week 2 vs Eagles) | 144 | Jim Mitchell (1969), Paul Flatley (1969) | 2 (tie) |
| Interceptions | 7 different players | 2 (tie) | ||||
Shoutouts
Many thanks for /u/Buggie111 and /u/BlackManonFIRE for the input they had
Special thanks to /r/falcons for being an awesome sub
Obligatory thanks to beer, because without beer, where would we be?
And finally, thanks to /u/nickmangoldsbeard for setting this all up.