1989 Atlanta Falcons season
NFL team season
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The 1989 Atlanta Falcons season was the franchise’s 24th season in the National Football League (NFL). The Falcons drafted Deion Sanders with their first round pick in the NFL Draft. Marion Campbell retired after the twelfth game of the season.[1]
Jim Hanifan (interim; 0-4 record)
| 1989 Atlanta Falcons season | |
|---|---|
| Head coach | Marion Campbell (fired November 28, 3-9 record) Jim Hanifan (interim; 0-4 record) |
| Home stadium | Fulton County Stadium |
| Results | |
| Record | 3–13 |
| Division place | 4th NFC West |
| Playoffs | Did not qualify |
| Pro Bowlers | 1 |
Despite having Sanders in their defensive backfield, the Falcons surrendered 7.59 yards per pass attempt (including quarterback sacks) in 1989, one of the ten worst totals in NFL history.[2]
The latter part of the season was marred by two tragedies. On November 24, rookie offensive tackle Ralph Norwood was killed in an automobile accident eight miles from the Falcons’ training facilities.[3] Just under a month later, on December 19, backup tight end Brad Beckman was also killed in an auto accident.[4] It marked the death of three players of the team in the space of two seasons (the previous year, cornerback David Croudip died of an overdose).
Offseason
NFL draft
| 1989 Atlanta Falcons draft | |||||
| Round | Pick | Player | Position | College | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 5 | Deion Sanders * † | Cornerback | Florida State | |
| 1 | 27 | Shawn Collins | Wide receiver | Northern Arizona | |
| 2 | 38 | Ralph Norwood | Offensive tackle | LSU | |
| 3 | 62 | Keith Jones | Running back | Illinois | |
| 6 | 145 | Troy Sadowski | Tight end | Georgia | |
| 7 | 172 | Undra Johnson | Running back | West Virginia | |
| 8 | 202 | Paul Singer | Quarterback | Western Illinois | |
| 9 | 229 | Chris Dunn | Linebacker | Cal Poly | |
| 11 | 286 | Greg Paterra | Running back | Slippery Rock | |
| 12 | 313 | Tony Bowick | Defensive tackle | Chattanooga | |
| Made roster † Pro Football Hall of Fame * Made at least one Pro Bowl during career | |||||
Undrafted free agents
| Player | Position | College |
|---|---|---|
| Oscar Angulo | Tight end | Eastern Kentucky |
| Norris Blount | Cornerback | Baylor |
| Deon Booker | Running back | Louisville |
| Ivan Cook | Linebacker | Washington State |
| Tyreese Knox | Running back | Nebraska |
| Steve McMillon | Cornerback | Wyoming |
| Maury Metcalf | Linebacker | Washington State |
| Mark Millett | Tight end | Southwest Texas State |
| Kevin Simien | Wide receiver | Fort Hays State |
| Alonzo Washington | Running back | Arizona |
Personnel
Staff
|
Front office
Head coaches
Offensive coaches
|
Defensive coaches
Special teams coaches
Strength and conditioning
|
Roster
Regular season
Schedule
| Week | Date | Opponent | Result | Record | Venue | Attendance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | September 10 | Los Angeles Rams | L 21–31 | 0–1 | Atlanta–Fulton County Stadium | 38,708 |
| 2 | September 17 | Dallas Cowboys | W 27–21 | 1–1 | Atlanta–Fulton County Stadium | 55,285 |
| 3 | September 24 | at Indianapolis Colts | L 9–13 | 1–2 | Hoosier Dome | 57,816 |
| 4 | October 1 | at Green Bay Packers | L 21–23 | 1–3 | Milwaukee County Stadium | 54,647 |
| 5 | October 8 | at Los Angeles Rams | L 14–26 | 1–4 | Anaheim Stadium | 52,182 |
| 6 | October 15 | New England Patriots | W 16–15 | 2–4 | Atlanta–Fulton County Stadium | 39,697 |
| 7 | October 22 | at Phoenix Cardinals | L 20–34 | 2–5 | Sun Devil Stadium | 33,894 |
| 8 | October 29 | at New Orleans Saints | L 13–20 | 2–6 | Louisiana Superdome | 65,153 |
| 9 | November 5 | Buffalo Bills | W 30–28 | 3–6 | Atlanta–Fulton County Stadium | 45,267 |
| 10 | November 12 | at San Francisco 49ers | L 3–45 | 3–7 | Candlestick Park | 59,914 |
| 11 | November 19 | New Orleans Saints | L 17–26 | 3–8 | Atlanta–Fulton County Stadium | 53,173 |
| 12 | November 26 | at New York Jets | L 7–27 | 3–9 | Giants Stadium | 40,429 |
| 13 | December 3 | San Francisco 49ers | L 10–23 | 3–10 | Atlanta–Fulton County Stadium | 43,128 |
| 14 | December 10 | at Minnesota Vikings | L 17–43 | 3–11 | Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome | 58,116 |
| 15 | December 17 | Washington Redskins | L 30–31 | 3–12 | Atlanta–Fulton County Stadium | 37,501 |
| 16 | December 24 | Detroit Lions | L 24–31 | 3–13 | Atlanta–Fulton County Stadium | 7,792 |
| Note: Intra-division opponents are in bold text. | ||||||
Game summaries
Week 4: at Green Bay Packers
| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Falcons | 0 | 20 | 3 | 0 | 23 |
| Packers | 7 | 0 | 7 | 7 | 21 |
at Milwaukee County Stadium, Milwaukee, Wisconsin
- Date: October 1, 1989
- Game time: 1:00 p.m. EST
- Game weather: Overcast, 76 °F (24 °C)
- Referee: Dick Hantak
- TV announcers (CBS): Tim Ryan and Randy Cross
| Game information | ||
|---|---|---|
|
Week 9
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bills | 7 | 0 | 14 | 7 | 28 |
| • Falcons | 0 | 3 | 17 | 10 | 30 |
- Date: Sunday November 5, 1989
- Location: Fulton County Stadium — Atlanta, Georgia
- Game start: 1:00pm EST
- Game attendance: 45,267
- Game weather: 56 °F (13.3 °C); wind 7 miles per hour (11 km/h; 6.1 kn)
- Referee: Bob McElwee
- TV announcers (NFL on NBC): Joel Meyers and Paul Maguire
[6] This would be the final win of the season for Atlanta.
Standings
| NFC West | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| W | L | T | PCT | DIV | CONF | PF | PA | STK | |
| San Francisco 49ers(1) | 14 | 2 | 0 | .875 | 5–1 | 10–2 | 442 | 253 | W5 |
| Los Angeles Rams(5) | 11 | 5 | 0 | .688 | 4–2 | 8–4 | 426 | 344 | W2 |
| New Orleans Saints | 9 | 7 | 0 | .563 | 3–3 | 5–7 | 386 | 301 | W3 |
| Atlanta Falcons | 3 | 13 | 0 | .188 | 0–6 | 1–11 | 279 | 437 | L7 |
Awards and records
- Shawn Collins, led all NFL rookie wide receivers in receptions (58)
Milestones
The Falcons drew a franchise-low attendance of 7,792 for their finale, a 31–24 loss to the Detroit Lions on December 24.[7]
