2011 Atlanta Falcons season
NFL team season
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The 2011 season was the Atlanta Falcons' 46th season in the National Football League (NFL) and the fourth under head coach Mike Smith.
| 2011 Atlanta Falcons season | |
|---|---|
| Owner | Arthur Blank |
| General manager | Thomas Dimitroff |
| Head coach | Mike Smith |
| Offensive coordinator | Mike Mularkey |
| Defensive coordinator | Brian VanGorder |
| Home stadium | Georgia Dome |
| Results | |
| Record | 10–6 |
| Division place | 2nd NFC South |
| Playoffs | Lost Wild Card Playoffs (at Giants) 2–24 |
| Pro Bowlers | TE Tony Gonzalez WR Roddy White |
Finishing the regular season 10–6, the Falcons clinched the #5 seed in the playoffs. Atlanta's season ended quickly as they lost 24–2 to the eventual Super Bowl XLVI champion New York Giants in the opening round.
This is also the first time the franchise clinched consecutive playoff berths, and the first time it won 10 or more games in consecutive seasons.
Offseason
Signings
| Pos. | Player | 2010 Team | Contract |
|---|---|---|---|
| DE | Ray Edwards | Minnesota Vikings | 5 years, $27.5 million |
| OLB | Stephen Nicholas | Atlanta Falcons | 5 years, $17.5 million |
| K | Matt Bryant | Atlanta Falcons | 4 years, $10.7 million |
Departures
| Pos. | Player | 2011 Team |
|---|---|---|
| WR | Michael Jenkins | Minnesota Vikings |
| DE | Jamaal Anderson | Indianapolis Colts |
| WR | Brian Finneran | |
2011 NFL draft
| 2011 Atlanta Falcons draft | |||||
| Round | Pick | Player | Position | College | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 6 | Julio Jones * | WR | Alabama | from Cleveland |
| 3 | 91 | Akeem Dent | ILB | Georgia | |
| 5 | 145 | Jacquizz Rodgers | RB | Oregon State | from St. Louis |
| 6 | 192 | Matt Bosher | P | Miami (FL) | |
| 7 | 210 | Andrew Jackson | OG | Fresno State | from Detroit [a] |
| 7 | 230 | Cliff Matthews | DE | South Carolina | from New England [b] |
| Made roster * Made at least one Pro Bowl during career | |||||
- ^[a] The Falcons acquired this seventh-round selection and a 2010 sixth-round selection in a trade that sent CB Chris Houston to the Detroit Lions.
- ^[b] The Falcons acquired this seventh-round selection in a trade that sent T Quinn Ojinnaka to the New England Patriots.
Staff
| Atlanta Falcons 2011 staff | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Front office
Head coaches
Offensive coaches
|
Defensive coaches
Special teams coaches
Strength and conditioning
| |||||
Final roster
Preseason
Schedule
The Falcons' preseason schedule was announced on April 12, 2011.
| Week | Date | Opponent | Result | Record | Game site | NFL.com recap |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | August 12 | Miami Dolphins | L 23–28 | 0–1 | Georgia Dome | Recap |
| 2 | August 19 | at Jacksonville Jaguars | L 13–15 | 0–2 | EverBank Field | Recap |
| 3 | August 27 | at Pittsburgh Steelers | L 16–34 | 0–3 | Heinz Field | Recap |
| 4 | September 1 | Baltimore Ravens | L 7–21 | 0–4 | Georgia Dome | Recap |
Regular season
Schedule
| Week | Date | Opponent | Result | Record | Game site | NFL.com recap | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | September 11 | at Chicago Bears | L 12–30 | 0–1 | Soldier Field | Recap | ||
| 2 | September 18 | Philadelphia Eagles | W 35–31 | 1–1 | Georgia Dome | Recap | ||
| 3 | September 25 | at Tampa Bay Buccaneers | L 13–16 | 1–2 | Raymond James Stadium | Recap | ||
| 4 | October 2 | at Seattle Seahawks | W 30–28 | 2–2 | CenturyLink Field | Recap | ||
| 5 | October 9 | Green Bay Packers | L 14–25 | 2–3 | Georgia Dome | Recap | ||
| 6 | October 16 | Carolina Panthers | W 31–17 | 3–3 | Georgia Dome | Recap | ||
| 7 | October 23 | at Detroit Lions | W 23–16 | 4–3 | Ford Field | Recap | ||
| 8 | Bye | |||||||
| 9 | November 6 | at Indianapolis Colts | W 31–7 | 5–3 | Lucas Oil Stadium | Recap | ||
| 10 | November 13 | New Orleans Saints | L 23–26 (OT) | 5–4 | Georgia Dome | Recap | ||
| 11 | November 20 | Tennessee Titans | W 23–17 | 6–4 | Georgia Dome | Recap | ||
| 12 | November 27 | Minnesota Vikings | W 24–14 | 7–4 | Georgia Dome | Recap | ||
| 13 | December 4 | at Houston Texans | L 10–17 | 7–5 | Reliant Stadium | Recap | ||
| 14 | December 11 | at Carolina Panthers | W 31–23 | 8–5 | Bank of America Stadium | Recap | ||
| 15 | December 15 | Jacksonville Jaguars | W 41–14 | 9–5 | Georgia Dome | Recap | ||
| 16 | December 26 | at New Orleans Saints | L 16–45 | 9–6 | Mercedes-Benz Superdome | Recap | ||
| 17 | January 1 | Tampa Bay Buccaneers | W 45–24 | 10–6 | Georgia Dome | Recap | ||
Game summaries
Week 1: at Chicago Bears
| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Falcons | 3 | 0 | 3 | 6 | 12 |
| Bears | 10 | 6 | 14 | 0 | 30 |
at Soldier Field, Chicago, Illinois
- Date: September 11
- Game time: 1:00 p.m. EDT/12:00 p.m. CDT
- Game weather: 76 °F or 24.4 °C (Partly Cloudy)
- Game attendance: 62,115
- Referee: Ed Hochuli
- TV announcers (Fox): Kenny Albert, Daryl Johnston and Tony Siragusa
| Game information | ||
|---|---|---|
|
The Falcons started their season out on the road against the Bears. With the loss, the team fell to 0–1.
Week 2: vs. Philadelphia Eagles
| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Eagles | 0 | 10 | 21 | 0 | 31 |
| Falcons | 7 | 7 | 7 | 14 | 35 |
at Georgia Dome, Atlanta, Georgia
- Date: September 18
- Game time: 8:20 p.m. EDT
- Game weather: Played indoors (dome stadium)
- Game attendance: 69,608
- Referee: Carl Cheffers
- TV announcers (NBC): Al Michaels, Cris Collinsworth and Michele Tafoya
| Game information | ||
|---|---|---|
|
For the regular season opener at home, the Falcons faced the Eagles. The win improved the team to 1–1 and also helped Starting QB Matt Ryan improve to 4–0 as a regular season starter during home openers.
Week 3: at Tampa Bay Buccaneers
| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Falcons | 0 | 3 | 0 | 10 | 13 |
| Buccaneers | 3 | 10 | 3 | 0 | 16 |
at Raymond James Stadium, Tampa, Florida
- Date: September 25
- Game time: 4:15 p.m. EDT
- Game weather: 89 °F or 31.7 °C (Rain)
- Game attendance: 46,995
- Referee: Clete Blakeman
- TV announcers (Fox): Thom Brennaman, Brian Billick and Laura Okmin
| Game information | ||
|---|---|---|
|
With the loss, the Falcons fell to 1–2.
Week 4: at Seattle Seahawks
| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Falcons | 7 | 17 | 3 | 3 | 30 |
| Seahawks | 0 | 7 | 14 | 7 | 28 |
at CenturyLink Field, Seattle, Washington
- Date: October 2
- Game time: 4:05 p.m. EDT/1:05 p.m. PDT
- Game weather: 58 °F or 14.4 °C (Partly Sunny)
- Game attendance: 66,266
- Referee: Walt Anderson
- TV announcers (Fox): Craig Bolerjack and John Lynch
| Game information | ||
|---|---|---|
|
With the win, the Falcons improved to 2–2.
Week 5: vs. Green Bay Packers
| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Packers | 0 | 6 | 9 | 10 | 25 |
| Falcons | 7 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 14 |
at Georgia Dome, Atlanta, Georgia
- Date: October 9
- Game time: 8:20 p.m. EDT
- Game weather: Played indoors (dome stadium)
- Game attendance: 69,576
- Referee: Jeff Triplette
- TV announcers (NBC): Al Michaels, Cris Collinsworth and Michele Tafoya
| Game information | ||
|---|---|---|
|
The Falcons went home for a week 5 duel with the undefeated Packers. This would be a rematch of last year's NFC Divisional Round. With the loss, the Falcons fell to 2–3.
Week 6: vs. Carolina Panthers
| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Panthers | 3 | 7 | 7 | 0 | 17 |
| Falcons | 7 | 7 | 0 | 17 | 31 |
at Georgia Dome, Atlanta, Georgia
- Date: October 16
- Game time: 1:00 p.m. EDT
- Game weather: Played indoors (dome stadium)
- Game attendance: 69,047
- Referee: Pete Morelli
- TV announcers (Fox): Dick Stockton and John Lynch
| Game information | ||
|---|---|---|
|
With their 3rd-straight win over the Panthers, the Falcons improved to 3–3.
Week 7: at Detroit Lions
| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Falcons | 10 | 7 | 3 | 3 | 23 |
| Lions | 3 | 3 | 10 | 0 | 16 |
at Ford Field, Detroit, Michigan
- Date: October 23
- Game time: 1:00 p.m. EDT
- Game weather: Played indoors (dome stadium)
- Game attendance: 63,625
- Referee: Bill Leavy
- TV announcers (Fox): Sam Rosen, Brian Billick and Laura Okmin
- Recap
Gamebook
| Game information | ||
|---|---|---|
|
With the win, the Falcons went into their bye week at 4–3.
Week 9: at Indianapolis Colts
| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Falcons | 14 | 7 | 7 | 3 | 31 |
| Colts | 0 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 7 |
at Lucas Oil Stadium, Indianapolis, Indiana
- Date: November 6
- Game time: 1:00 p.m. EST
- Game weather: 57 °F or 13.9 °C (sunny, retractable roof open)
- Game attendance: 65,218
- Referee: Mike Carey
- TV announcers (Fox): Ron Pitts, Jim Mora, Jr.
- [citation needed]
| Game information | ||
|---|---|---|
|
With the win, the Falcons improved to 5–3 and went 2–13 overall against the Colts.
Week 10: vs. New Orleans Saints
| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | OT | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Saints | 3 | 7 | 7 | 6 | 3 | 26 |
| Falcons | 3 | 3 | 7 | 10 | 0 | 23 |
at Georgia Dome, Atlanta, Georgia
- Date: November 13
- Game time: 1:00 p.m. EST
- Game weather: Played indoors (dome stadium)
- Game attendance: 70,359
- Referee: Terry McAulay
- TV announcers (Fox): Kenny Albert, Daryl Johnston and Tony Siragusa
- [citation needed]
| Game information | ||
|---|---|---|
|
With the loss, the Falcons fell to 5–4.
Week 11: vs. Tennessee Titans
| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Titans | 0 | 3 | 7 | 7 | 17 |
| Falcons | 7 | 6 | 10 | 0 | 23 |
at Georgia Dome, Atlanta, Georgia
- Date: November 20
- Game time: 4:15 p.m. EST[1]
- Game weather: Played indoors (dome stadium)
- Game attendance: 68,164
- Referee: John Parry
- TV announcers (CBS): Ian Eagle and Dan Fouts
| Game information | ||
|---|---|---|
|
With the win, the Falcons improved to 6–4.
Week 12: vs. Minnesota Vikings
| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Vikings | 0 | 0 | 7 | 7 | 14 |
| Falcons | 7 | 10 | 0 | 7 | 24 |
at Georgia Dome, Atlanta, Georgia
- Date: November 27
- Game time: 1:00 p.m. EST
- Game weather: Played indoors (dome stadium)
- Game attendance: 68,115
- Referee: Alberto Riveron
- TV announcers (Fox): Thom Brennaman, Brian Billick and Laura Okmin
| Game information | ||
|---|---|---|
|
With the win, the Falcons improved to 7–4.
Week 13: at Houston Texans
| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Falcons | 0 | 3 | 7 | 0 | 10 |
| Texans | 3 | 7 | 0 | 7 | 17 |
at Reliant Stadium, Houston, Texas
- Date: December 4
- Game time: 1:00 p.m. EST/12:00 p.m. CST
- Game weather: Played indoors (retractable roof closed)
- Game attendance: 71,545
- Referee: Bill Leavy
- TV announcers (Fox): Kenny Albert, Daryl Johnston and Tony Siragusa
| Game information | ||
|---|---|---|
|
With the loss, the Falcons fell to 7–5.
Week 14: at Carolina Panthers
| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Falcons | 7 | 0 | 10 | 14 | 31 |
| Panthers | 7 | 16 | 0 | 0 | 23 |
at Bank of America Stadium, Charlotte, North Carolina
- Date: December 11
- Game time: 1:00 p.m. EST
- Game weather: 43 °F or 6.1 °C (Sunny)
- Game attendance: 72,680
- Referee: Walt Anderson
- TV announcers (Fox): Ron Pitts, Jim Mora, Jr. and Drea Avent
| Game information | ||
|---|---|---|
|
With the win, the Falcons improved to 8–5.
Week 15: vs. Jacksonville Jaguars
| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jaguars | 0 | 0 | 7 | 7 | 14 |
| Falcons | 10 | 17 | 14 | 0 | 41 |
at Georgia Dome, Atlanta, Georgia
- Date: December 15
- Game time: 8:20 p.m. EST
- Game weather: Played indoors (dome stadium)
- Game attendance: 68,856
- Referee: Ron Winter
- TV announcers (NFLN): Brad Nessler, Mike Mayock and Alex Flanagan
| Game information | ||
|---|---|---|
|
With the win, the Falcons improved to 9–5.
Week 16: at New Orleans Saints
| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Falcons | 10 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 16 |
| Saints | 7 | 14 | 10 | 14 | 45 |
at Mercedes-Benz Superdome, New Orleans, Louisiana
- Date: December 26
- Game time: 8:30 p.m. EST/7:30 p.m. CST
- Game weather: Played indoors (dome stadium)
- Game attendance: 70,086
- Referee: Jeff Triplette
- TV announcers (ESPN): Mike Tirico, Ron Jaworski, Jon Gruden and Suzy Kolber
| Game information | ||
|---|---|---|
|
With the loss, the Falcons fell to 9–6, but were able to clinch a playoff spot due to the Chicago Bears 35–21 loss to the Green Bay Packers Sunday night.
Week 17: vs. Tampa Bay Buccaneers
| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Buccaneers | 0 | 7 | 11 | 6 | 24 |
| Falcons | 21 | 21 | 0 | 3 | 45 |
at Georgia Dome, Atlanta, Georgia
- Date: January 1
- Game time: 4:15 p.m. EST[2]
- Game weather: Played indoors (dome stadium)
- Game attendance: 68,167
- Referee: Scott Green
- TV announcers (Fox): Dick Stockton & John Lynch
| Game information | ||
|---|---|---|
|
With the win, the Falcons finished the season at 10–6 and captured the NFC's #5 seed.
Standings
| NFC South | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| W | L | T | PCT | DIV | CONF | PF | PA | STK | |
| (3) New Orleans Saints | 13 | 3 | 0 | .813 | 5–1 | 9–3 | 547 | 339 | W8 |
| (5) Atlanta Falcons | 10 | 6 | 0 | .625 | 3–3 | 7–5 | 402 | 350 | W1 |
| Carolina Panthers | 6 | 10 | 0 | .375 | 2–4 | 3–9 | 406 | 429 | L1 |
| Tampa Bay Buccaneers | 4 | 12 | 0 | .250 | 2–4 | 3–9 | 287 | 494 | L10 |
Postseason
Schedule
| Playoff round | Date | Kickoff | Opponent (seed) | Results | Game site | TV | NFL.com recap | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Final score | Team record | |||||||
| Wild Card | January 8, 2012 | 1:00 p.m. EST | at New York Giants (4) | L 2–24 | 0–1 | MetLife Stadium | Fox | Recap |
Game summaries
NFC Wild Card Playoff Game: at #4 New York Giants
| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Falcons | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| Giants | 0 | 7 | 10 | 7 | 24 |
at MetLife Stadium, East Rutherford, New Jersey
- Date: January 8, 2012
- Game time: 1:00 p.m. EST
- Game weather: 44 °F (6.7 °C), Partly Cloudy
- Game attendance: 79,909
- Referee: Carl Cheffers
- TV announcers (Fox): Joe Buck, Troy Aikman and Pam Oliver
| Game information | ||
|---|---|---|
|
The Falcons lost their Wild Card round playoff game to the New York Giants on January 8, 2012, by a score of 24–2. It is the first time in NFL playoff history that a team has scored exactly two points. The previous NFL team to score only a safety in a game was the 1993 Cincinnati Bengals in Week 15 against the New England Patriots.