The entire backdrop of Falcon's football has to be set in context. The state of Georgia is college football country through and through. When I was growing up in the early to mid '90's there were many times that Falcon games weren't on TV because of NFL blackout rules tied to low attendance at games. When the team struggles, people simply don't pay attention and people just don't care.
Add to that fact that Atlanta is a city made up of people from other cities, primarily in the north eastern part of the country, and you have a lot of fans of the Giants, Eagles, Redskins, and even the Jets that live in Atlanta but will never be Falcon fans.
Going back to the 1980's you can talk about Steve Bartkowski, but the Falcons made it to prime time when they drafted "Prime Time." In 1989, the Falcons drafted Dion Sanders in the first round of the NFL draft and the circus truly came to town. Sanders had been a standout at Florida State where he began calling himself "Prime Time" and "Neon Deon." Having Sanders on the team put the franchise on the map nationally.
In 1991, the Falcons drafted quarterback Bret Favre out of Southern Mississippi, but Favre played in only two games for the Falcons. As the team prepared to move into the newly built Georgia Dome in 1992, they made the most infamous trade in franchise history by sending Bret Favre to the Green Bay Packers.
Over the next six years, the team lost Sanders to free agency, again fell off the national stage, and had to watch Favre win a Super Bowl in Green Bay in 1996.
Somehow, the Falcons managed to catch lightning in a bottle in 1998. Out of no where, Jamal Anderson led the newly minted "Dirty Birds" to a 14-2 record in the regular season. The team overcame a heart attack suffered by coach Dan Reeves, to make it to the playoffs as the number two seed in the NFC. The Falcons won a home game in the divisional round of the playoffs against then division rival San Francisco, to advance to play the 16-1 Minnesota Vikings in the NFC Championship Game.
In overtime, Morten Anderson's field goal sent Atlanta to their first Super Bowl in franchise history. Denver would defeat the Falcons in the Super Bowl, but for the first time ever, Falcon fans had a reason to be optimistic.
That optimism was short lived. Jamal Anderson suffered a knee injury in Week 2, and the team fell apart. One year after going to the Super Bowl, the Falcons finished the season 5-11.
From 5-11 in 1999 to 4-12 in 2000 the Falcons seemed to be back to being the same old losing franchise. The team was about to be sold to Home Depot founder Arthur Blank as the 2001 NFL Draft approached. The Falcons decided to make a splash and take a chance by moving up to get the number one pick in the draft and take Michael Vick to be their franchise quarterback.
Vick didn't play in 2001, but when he did take the starting job in 2002, he led the team to the playoffs for the first time since 1998. Vick then did something that had never been done before. Vick led the Falcons to a win in Green Bay over the Packers in the wild card round of the playoffs, the first ever home playoff loss for the Packers. Even though the Falcons lost to the Eagles in the next round, there was, once again, a reason for hope.
As only the Falcons could do, they ripped the heart out of the fan base in the preseason, when Vick was injured in a game against Baltimore. He would miss the first 12 games of the regular season, and the team inexplicably fired Dan Reeves before Vick returned to the field. Once Vick returned, the Falcons won 3 of their last 4 games to finish the season 5-11.
The Falcons hired Jim Mora Jr. to be their new coach for the 2004 season, and Mora's new up beat approach worked well in 2004. The Falcons were the number two seed in the NFC after going 11-5 and beat the Rams in the Georgia Dome to get back to the NFC Championship Game for the first time since 1998 and only the second time in team history. Again the Falcons were foiled by the Eagles, but with a new coach, a dynamic quarterback, and an owner who was committed to winning at the highest level, finally, it was time for the Falcons to take flight.
Only, it wasn't. The Falcons under achieved in 2005 and 2006 going 8-8 and 7-9 respectively. Mora was fired after the '06 season, and Bobby Petrino, an offensive mastermind, was hired to get the most out of Michael Vick and the Falcon offense. The Petrino hiring should have been a perfect fit, but he would never get a chance to work with Vick.
Vick was suspended for the 2007 season over dog fighting alegations. Vick would eventually be sent to jail, and the team would part ways with him. Just when you thought it couldn't get any worse, new head coach Bobby Petrino resigned to take the Arkansas head coaching job, and left his former players a note in the locker room as he left.
After what could be described as the worst season in the history of a franchise that had seen a lot of bad seasons, the Falcons started over completely. A new General manager was hired, Thomas Dimitoff. A new head coach was hired, Mike Smith. And with their first pick in the 2008 draft, number 3 overall, the Falcons drafted their new quarterback Matt Ryan from Boston College.
In 2008 the Falcons made the playoff. In 2009 the Falcons missed the playoffs but by going 9-7, they secured the first back to back winning seasons in the history of the franchise. 13-3 and a division champion in 2010. Back in the playoffs in 2011. Even though they had not won a playoff game through this time period, it was still the most sustained success the franchise had ever seen. The Falcons were 13-3 again this year and, of course, won a playoff game last Sunday in dramatic fashion over the Seahawks.
The point of all of this history is this: a win on Sunday against the 49ers in the NFC Championship Game wouldn't be a flash in the pan, it would be the culmination of a plan that has been put into place over the past 5 years by a group of men that have dedicated themselves to the idea that this franchise can be elite. Yes the Falcons have been to a Super Bowl before, but this would be different. This isn't catching lighting in a bottle. The Falcons have drafted well over the past few years to get their talent level at a place where winning isn't hoped for, it's expected. They have taken chances by trading up in the draft to get players they believe can help them win a Super Bowl. They traded a second round pick for a Hall of Fame tight end that others thought was in the twilight of his career four years ago.
This version of the Falcons might have won their first playoff game last week, but success is nothing new to them. They have the best record in the NFC over the past 5 seasons. The national media might doubt them, the fans might be skeptical, but this team and this organization hasn't made it to this point by accident.
The Atlanta Falcons have put themselves right where they want to be. They are hosting the NFC Championship Game in a building where they are 34-8 in the Ryan/Smith/Dimitroff era. They are one win away, not from a hope or a dream, but from a goal, and that might make all the difference in the world.
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